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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/30104187">The Other Side of Him</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/zanabaq/pseuds/zanabaq'>zanabaq</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Naruto</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Alternate Universe - High School, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Angst, Blood, Crimes &amp; Criminals, Dark, Dark Uzumaki Naruto, Death, Drama, Drama &amp; Romance, Eventual Romance, Everyone Is Alive, F/M, It Gets Worse, Mental Health Issues, Mental Instability, Minor Character Death, Murder, Namikaze Minato Lives, One-Sided Relationship, Plot Twists, Protective Uchiha Sasuke, Smart Uzumaki Naruto, Suspense, Uzumaki Kushina Lives, Violence</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>In-Progress</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2021-03-17</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2021-05-10</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-15 23:28:23</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Mature</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Graphic Depictions Of Violence</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>14</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>48,353</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/30104187</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/zanabaq/pseuds/zanabaq</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Naruto has another personality inside his head. It makes him kill people. He just moved back to Konoha and now he must deal with his past, his first true love, and his killing intent. [Modern AU] [Eventual NaruHina] [OneSided SasuHina]</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Hyuuga Hinata &amp; Uchiha Sasuke, Hyuuga Hinata &amp; Uchiha Sasuke &amp; Uzumaki Naruto, Hyuuga Hinata &amp; Uzumaki Naruto, Hyuuga Hinata/Uchiha Sasuke, Hyuuga Hinata/Uzumaki Naruto</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>27</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>55</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>1. Chapter 1</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>Hi everyone! First of all, thank you so much for clicking on my story, I’m honored! This one will be the first and last long author’s note at the beginning of a chapter, but I want to clear some things before jumping into the story.</p><p>Grammar and vocab: English is not my first language. I’m doing my best to avoid grammar mistakes but it’s highly probable you will still find some. I’m so sorry for that, feel free to point them out if it’s too distracting and I will correct them. Also, sorry if I misused any words. I don’t have a beta, but I’m open to it, so if you are a proficient user of English and would be up for the task, feel free to message me!</p><p>Plot and characters: This is my very first attempt at writing any story, so bear with me please. Constructive criticism is always welcomed though! The story itself is set in a Modern AU, so you won’t find ninjas and jutsus or anything like that. I’m trying my best to avoid OOC, but sometimes characters will be inevitably OOC, which is especially true for Naruto. Also, I plan on turning the story kinda darkish as we progress so, keep that in mind.</p><p>Pairings: The story is heavily focused on Hinata, Naruto, and Sasuke. I must give a warning to SasuHina haters though. If you can’t stand reading about this pairing at all, this story won’t be your cup of tea. You will see a lot of interaction between them, even some romantical. However, the endgame pairing will be NaruHina for sure (spoilers, sorry). While this is true, the story itself is not heavily focused on romance, so if you are here for some fluff, you may be disappointed in this story.</p><p>Warning: This story will contain description of violence, murder, and other possibly disturbing things. They won’t be too detailed but it’s better if you expect them.</p><p>Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or any of the characters.</p><p>Now, onto the story!</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>He was standing in the corridor of his school. His new school. He had moved back to town just a week ago, and he already had to show up in his new high school. He sighed, he wanted to relax a bit more before getting back to education again, but his parents refused the idea. Moving to a new place would be easier if you occupied your mind with classes and getting to know new friends, they said. He was not so sure about that.</p><p>He was born in Konoha and had lived here until he was 10 years old. A little after his 10th birthday his family moved to Suna. Well, half of his family. His father stayed in Konoha because of his work as a politician, but he visited them quite a lot. He came to spend the weekend with his family twice every month.</p><p>It had been hard for his parents to be separated but they always said it must be done in order to help him. His parents felt he needed a change in his life, and they decided it is for the best if he moved with his mom to the sunny Suna. It had been hard at first, but he grew to like Suna. He made lots of friends there and had a lot of fun.</p><p>And now he was here again in Konoha, a place he barely remembered. Of course, he remembered some of his old buddies and some places he had visited with his parents, but these weren't vivid memories. He knew it was good living here, but he also knew he felt way better in Suna. Well, it didn't matter anyway, he was here now.</p><p>When his parents told him they had decided it was time for his mother and him to move back to Konoha, he was surprised. Of course, he knew his parents wanted to start living together again, but he thought they would wait until he finished high school in Suna. He was sure his parents would move together again at the very second he started university, but he was stunned when he realized they wouldn't wait until that.</p><p>It was so sudden, at least for him. He was certain his parents had talked about it a lot beforehand, but he didn't understand why they had never asked him about it. Another thing he also couldn't grasp was the fact that this school year had already started a month ago. Why didn't they make this step before that? It could have been way easier to transfer then than it was now.</p><p>"You can come in now," a head with grey hair poked out of the classroom. He was one of his new teachers, his name was Kakashi if he remembered correctly.</p><p>He ran his fingers through his blond hair and sighed again, eyes closed. It was time to introduce himself to his new class. He wondered if he knew somebody in there from his childhood. He opened his eyes and stepped into the classroom.</p><p>"Class, this is your new classmate, Uzumaki Naruto. Please be nice to him," he heard Kakashi's voice.</p><p>25 pairs of eyes were now focused on him. He felt a little bit uncomfortable, so he scratched the back of his head and grinned. A bad habit of his, he always tried to refrain from it but most of the time he failed miserably.</p><p>"Hi all, I'm Uzumaki Naruto as it has already been said, it's nice to meet you all," he said, still smiling. "I have just moved back in town a week ago, so I don't really know anybody, it would be great to have some new friends."</p><p>What a stupid thing to say to a bunch of strangers, he thought. He didn't know why he couldn't introduce himself normally. Like, just only saying his name and nothing else. He was always too talkative.</p><p>"Well," he heard Kakashi speak up, "I think we should find you a place to sit first. There are two empty seats as I can see, you can choose whichever place you like."</p><p>He looked around the classroom. There were two empty seats indeed, one next to a pink-haired girl, and another one next to a brown-haired boy who worn black sunglasses. Naruto didn't understand why anyone would wear sunglasses inside a building but he let it go. He felt a weird aura around the boy, so he chose to walk up to the pinkette instead.</p><p>"Is it okay if I sit next to you?" he asked the girl, flashing one of his signature bright smiles at her.</p><p>He could see the girl blushing a bit which boosted his confidence nicely. He knew he wasn't ugly but he never thought of himself being too good-looking either. He just viewed himself as an average-looking guy, so whenever a girl found him attractive, he was kind of honored. Of course, his mom always said he was very handsome, but come on, it was his mom.</p><p>"You can sit here, of course! I'm Haruno Sakura, by the way," the girl smiled at him.</p><p>He nodded gratefully and sat down on the empty seat. He packed out his school supplies and waited for his teacher to start the class. When Kakashi saw everything was fine and settled, he turned to the board and started today's history lesson.</p><p>Naruto constantly felt eyes on him. When he caught someone's gaze, he flashed his smile at them. Some students were rude and didn't return his smile. There was this particular boy with black hair and black eyes who was so familiar to him. Was he one of his childhood buddies? Naruto wasn't sure, but when he smiled at the boy he just frowned in disgust and looked the other way. He seemed so full of himself.</p><p>Next to him was a girl with long, dark blue hair and lavender eyes. She seemed quite nice and when Naruto smiled at her, her face took such a dark shade of red he didn't even think something like that was possible. She started fidgeting with her fingers and turned back to the teacher who was explaining something about Konoha's history.</p><p>"That's Sasuke and Hinata," the pink-haired girl, Sakura whispered to him. "They are big things here. I mean, they are kind of elite, their families are wealthy beyond comprehension. Sasuke is a bit grumpy but usually, he is cool. Hinata is very kind, we hang out a lot with her, she is not arrogant or anything."</p><p>"Nice couple," Naruto whispered back.</p><p>"Oh, no, they are not together. They are just good friends as far as I know," Sakura eyed Sasuke. "Anyway, you could join us for lunch if you want. We usually eat together."</p><p>Naruto nodded and smiled at her happily. He could make friends quite easily his whole life, but today morning he was still certain the first days would be like hell until he got to know some of his new classmates. However, Sakura was friendly with him and even invited him to join her and her friends for lunch. He liked the girl at first glance too, but he liked her even more now. Maybe it wasn't such a bad thing to move back to Konoha.</p><p> </p><p>-x-x-x-x-</p><p> </p><p>He was sitting with Sakura and her friends at lunch. At first, he was a bit nervous. He was afraid they wouldn't want him to sit with them, but fortunately, that wasn't the case at all. They welcomed him and tried to involve him in every conversation they had. They were loud and energetic, just like Naruto, so he warmed up pretty easily in their company. He was laughing with them at a joke Kiba had just said.</p><p>Naruto could see himself get along well with Kiba, he noticed they were similar. He wasn't his classmate, he attended another class along with Ino, who was now bickering with Sakura about something. Hinata just sat there with a small smile on her face, trying to ease the tension between the two girls. Sasuke was also there but he said nothing, he crossed his arms in front of his chest and didn't even lift his gaze from the ground.</p><p>"So, Naruto," Kiba pointed the hot-dog he was eating at Naruto. "You said you moved here from Suna." Naruto nodded. "How is it? I have never been there but heard girls are beautiful over there."</p><p>"They are indeed," Naruto grinned.</p><p>"So why did you move back to Konoha? Is it because of those awful murders that have happened in Suna lately?" Ino turned to Naruto.</p><p>It was true, there were numerous murders in Suna in the last couple of months and Suna's police force hadn't been able to find the culprit easily. They had known that all had been done by one person, a serial killer. They had also suspected the perpetrator could have been a man, most probably in his early twenties, but that had been all that they could decode about the murderer's identity for months.</p><p>"I heard he got caught," Hinata whispered so silently, they almost couldn't hear her say anything.</p><p>The news had been full about the case ever since last week when Suna announced they had caught the murderer. His face was never officially shown to the public, but it was easy to find photos about him on the web on different forums. His red hair and lifeless green eyes were hard to forget for anyone who saw any of his photos. The man was now on trial, but it was quite certain he would get the death penalty.</p><p>He had murdered several men and women, all young adults or teenagers, which was the main reason the police had thought he himself could be in his early twenties. It was a real shock when he turned out to be only a high schooler.</p><p>"Well, my parents wanted to move in together again, so I had to move back with my mom," Naruto answered Ino's question. "They were not divorced or anything like that," he continued, holding up his hands in front of him when he saw the confused looks. "We moved to Suna with my mom to get some fresh air, but my dad couldn't follow because of his job."</p><p>"What does he do?" Sakura asked, her jade eyes meeting with Naruto's cerulean orbs.</p><p>"Politics. He aspires to be Hokage after the next elections."</p><p>"Eeeeeh!" Ino yelled, pointing her finger at Naruto. "Are you Namikaze Minato's son? I didn't know he had a child at all. Also, I thought he was single…" she whimpered.</p><p>Naruto blinked. He didn't understand what got into Ino. He knew his father was kind of famous, especially compared to other politicians, but he couldn't figure out why. He was a good politician for sure, he also gave a lot of interviews, and occasionally had some photoshoots which was especially unusual for a politician. He also knew his father liked keeping his private life to himself, so he wondered for a moment if it was wise to share this information with his new friends.</p><p>"Didn't you say your surname was Uzumaki?" Kiba inquired.</p><p>"It is, I got my mom's surname. I don't know why that is though, I have never asked," he smiled nervously, rubbing the back of his head.</p><p>"Well, he is too old for me anyway," said Ino as she regained her composure. "Let's just go back to class, the next period is about to start."</p><p>As they walked back to the classroom, Naruto could feel Sasuke glaring at his back. He wanted to spin around and yell at him to stop, but he refrained from doing that. He knew he should remember this boy from somewhere but the more he thought about it the more confused he got.</p><p>Kiba and Ino waved goodbye as they entered their classroom. Naruto glanced back over his shoulder to look at Sasuke and Sakura. Sakura was babbling about something to the raven-haired boy, but he didn't seem like he was listening at all. His dark eyes locked with Naruto's blue gaze. He really tried to place this boy in his memories but to no avail.</p><p>"Um, N-Naruto-kun…" Naruto felt Hinata gently pulling the sleeve of his uniform to gain his attention. "Don't mind Sasuke-kun, he is… he is just not good at making new friends."</p><p>"No worries, Hinata-chan," Naruto flashed a smile at her, and Hinata was as red as a tomato yet again.</p><p>Naruto thought Hinata was weird but in a cute way. She was shy and didn't talk much. He couldn't help thinking about their conversations with Sasuke, who could easily pass as someone mute, as he didn't say a word all day. He chuckled mentally as he tried to imagine the gentle Hinata being friends with the grumpy Sasuke.</p><p>They entered their classroom, and everybody sat at their own desk. Naruto sighed. He really wanted this day to end now. He just wanted to go home and rest a bit.</p><p> </p><p>-x-x-x-x-</p><p> </p><p>The sun was already setting when Naruto was waiting for his bus. All of a sudden, he saw this beautiful girl passing in front of him. She was tall, slim, and had gorgeous long, brown hair. He was mesmerized. He didn't even think when he turned around and started following the girl. He didn't know what, but something definitely attracted him to the girl.</p><p><em>'Wouldn't she be more beautiful with her neck sliced open?'</em> Naruto stopped abruptly. That was a weird thought, but somehow… somehow, he felt this tingling feeling in his stomach. He let his legs bring him closer to the girl. She must have noticed his presence as she suddenly pulled herself to an alley. He went after her without a second thought.</p><p>In the middle of the alley, Naruto saw a chain-link fence. The girl was standing in front of it, it was in her way. She tried to pull it a few times. She looked like she was testing if it could hold her weight in case she decided to climb it. She then unexpectedly spun around and yelled at Naruto.</p><p>Naruto couldn't really grasp what she was saying, maybe something like<em> 'Why are you following me?'</em> and<em> 'Don't come closer or I will scream!'</em>, but he didn't even care. She was beautiful, her presence pulled him closer like a magnet.</p><p><em>'There is nothing wrong with having some fun before going home,'</em> he heard this voice inside his head, which was not exactly his voice, but at the same time, it was his.</p><p>"I will not hurt you," he heard his own voice call out to the girl as he was getting closer and closer to her.</p><p>The girl was almost glued to the fence. As she realized she couldn't take more steps back, fear became clear in her eyes. She suddenly decided to try escaping by climbing the fence, but at the very moment she turned around, she felt two hands dragging her down to the ground. She tried screaming but a hand was forcibly put on her mouth. She tried to kick Naruto off, but he was just too strong. She started crying.</p><p>"You are very pretty when you cry," Naruto whispered to her ear.</p><p><em>'Now, what to do with her.'</em> Naruto looked around looking for something to use. There was nothing interesting in the alley. He could use his hands to beat her to death, or he could just strangle her. He turned his gaze back to the girl. <em>'She would be really pretty with some blood on her.'</em></p><p>He quickly searched his backpack for his favorite thing which he always kept at hand: his small knife. The girl's eyes widened in panic when she realized what he held in his hand. She started struggling more, but Naruto let more of his weight onto the girl's body to hold her down better. He scratched her cheeks with the knife just enough for a little blood to make its way down on the girl's cheeks. Her red blood was just so fascinating.</p><p><em>'Do it,'</em> ordered the voice in his head, and Naruto obeyed. He pushed the knife into the girl's throat, slicing her carotid artery. He immediately felt the girl's body go limp under him.</p><p>She was dead.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0002"><h2>2. Chapter 2</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <strong>Chapter 2</strong>
</p>
<p>“I’m home,” Naruto yelled as he stepped inside the house and took off his shoes.</p>
<p>He had spent the first 10 years of his life in this very house, and now he was living here again. He liked it here, it brought back nice memories, but he felt a little bit homesick for their house in Suna.</p>
<p>Their home in Konoha was bigger than the one he had shared with his mom in Suna. This one had two floors and a fairly big garden. The swings from his childhood were still in the backyard. He liked looking at them, it helped him feel more at home in Konoha.</p>
<p>He often wondered if his parents had wanted another child. The house was too big for the three of them but could have been perfect for a family of four. They also had a spare bedroom next to his room, which they never used. Yeah, he was sure his parents had wanted another child, but that never happened for some reason.</p>
<p>“Welcome home, Naruto,” his mom poked her head out of the kitchen, smiling happily at her son. “How was your first day?”</p>
<p>“It was fine. I have already made some friends,” Naruto announced proudly.</p>
<p>“I’m glad. You see, I told you it would be good for us to come back here,” she chirped and returned her attention to the food she was currently making. “Dinner is almost ready, please fetch your father for me. He is in his study.”</p>
<p>Naruto nodded with a wide smile on his face and went to his father’s office. He saw the closed door, which most probably meant Minato was busy. He was still unsure about his father’s habits as he was still getting used to the older blond being around on weekdays. He totally forgot how life had been before. It was strange living with both of his parents again after so many years.</p>
<p>He knocked on the door. When he heard an answer, he peeked in and told his father about dinner being almost ready. The man nodded and signaled he would go soon. Naruto smiled at him and closed the door. He turned around and looked at his reflection in the mirror in the hallway. His blond hair was a bit messy and he spotted some spots of blood on his shirt’s collar.<em> ‘Lucky this is everything that got on me. It was kinda messy.’</em></p>
<p>He went upstairs and tossed his shirt in the laundry. <em>‘If Mom asks, it was a nosebleed.’</em></p>
<p>He walked to his bedroom and laid down on his bed. He raised his hands towards the ceiling and stared at them.<em> ‘You are not crazy, Naruto. If it feels good, why should you stop?’</em> He sighed and closed his eyes, lowering his arms next to his body. He was not crazy. He was just different.</p>
<p>“Naruto?” he heard his mother yell his name out of the blue. Her voice sounded slightly annoyed. He most probably fell asleep for some minutes.</p>
<p>“Coming!” Naruto yelled back, quickly standing up and putting on an orange T-shirt he just found on the floor.</p>
<p>He ran downstairs and sat down for dinner. His father was already there, smiling at his mother while she was putting three bowls of ramen on the table. Naruto loved ramen, and he knew his mom made it for his honor. He grinned at her as a thank you.</p>
<p>“So, your mother told me you have made some new friends at school today. I’m happy for you,” his father smiled at him.</p>
<p>Naruto felt happy, too. He missed his friends in Suna, but he was glad he could make new connections so quickly here in Konoha. He was also thrilled because he could clearly see the joy in his parents’ eyes. They had wanted to live together again so much but they had never felt it was a convenient time for Naruto to leave Suna.</p>
<p>They were kind of right, Naruto never wanted to leave Suna. He would have preferred if his father had moved to Suna, but well. Minato wanted to be Hokage, not Kazekage, so it was understandable. His family was together again and that was what mattered the most.</p>
<p>“Do you take your meds regularly, Naruto?” his father asked, worry was clear in his blue eyes. Naruto’s eye twitched. He could feel the happy mood rapidly dying down.</p>
<p>“Of course, Dad! You two shouldn’t worry about me anymore, I’m a big boy now,” he tried to sound as cheerful as before, but he was certain his parents saw his muscles tensing.</p>
<p>Yeah, his medications. He was taking strong medication ever since he was 10. When he was younger, his mom always wanted to be there when he took them. She didn’t trust her son to regularly take them without her supervision. It got better with time, however. Naruto always took his meds, so his mom loosened up a bit. She insisted fewer and fewer times to actually see him taking them. By the time he was 16, he was trusted enough not to be supervised at all.</p>
<p>And Naruto was truly responsible, at least for some time. The night of his 17th birthday he decided he didn’t need his meds anymore. He first started by taking them only occasionally, not every day as he used to. He didn’t feel anything changing inside him. He felt the same as he had felt before. So, he had stopped taking his pills completely a few months ago.</p>
<p>“I have arranged a weekly session for you with Dr. Tsunade. I know you liked going to your sessions in Suna. I figured it would be good for you if you kept up with it here, too. It’s always good to talk to someone about our feelings,” his father smiled at him again and patted Naruto’s hand above the table.</p>
<p>Naruto’s heart sank into his stomach. He knew too well what his father was talking about. Psychotherapy. His parents avoided the word like fire, they always called it session, but never therapy.</p>
<p>He started attending therapy at the same time he started taking meds. At first, he really loved going to these sessions. As a child, he felt comfort and peace while talking to his therapist. However, as he got older, he started resenting the whole thing. Everybody seemed to think he was crazy.</p>
<p>He never told his mom that he hated these sessions though. He didn’t want to hurt her. He was aware his mother did everything in order to help him, even though he didn’t need help. He wasn’t crazy after all.</p>
<p>He went to every session and answered every question of his therapist with the right answer. Or at least with the answer he thought to be right. Sometimes he had to lie of course, but if he hadn’t done it, his therapist would have figured out he had stopped taking his meds.</p>
<p>“Thank you, Father. It will be good to talk to someone who understands,” he forced a wide smile on his face to reassure the older blond.</p>
<p>“How is Kurama? Have you spoke to him recently?” his mother inquired innocently.</p>
<p>This was a trap. Naruto knew her mother too well now. Kurama was Naruto, and Naruto was Kurama, as impossible as it sounded. Kurama was the voice inside his head. His therapist said it was his other personality.</p>
<p>When he was a child he gave him a name. Kurama was so different from Naruto, he felt like he had to name him. Naruto was energetic, happy, and caring. Kurama was dark, hateful, and murderous. He was not a nice person to be around.</p>
<p>When Naruto first told about Kurama as a child to his mother, she thought it was an imaginary friend of some sort. She advised Naruto to talk to him and have fun with him. She thought it was just a phase that would go away. Naruto said Kurama wanted him to do different things for fun. His mother asked if those things felt nice to do, and Naruto answered with a yes. She then reassured him it was okay to do the things Kurama had asked for.</p>
<p>So, Naruto started obeying Kurama. It started with small things. Stepping on an insect, throwing rocks on birds, pushing other kids to the ground. As he grew older, Kurama asked for worse things. Killing small animals like toads, breaking the leg of a cat, beating up other kids. It was the first time his parents noticed something was not right. His father scolded him at this time a lot, but Naruto knew he didn’t do those things. It was Kurama.</p>
<p>By the time he was 10, he had done ruthless things. He killed one of his friends’ dog in cold blood. He also strangely enjoyed putting blades to different places, waiting until someone sat on them or grabbed them accidentally. He loved seeing blood. However, the day of his 10th birthday party was the day when his parents realized he needed serious help.</p>
<p>His parents threw an awesome birthday party for him and invited lots of his friends, as being a decade old was a big thing. He remembered his big cake, it was chocolate flavored, his favorite. Everybody was having fun until he heard Kurama’s voice in his head calling him.</p>
<p>He even felt a little ashamed of himself. He had been having fun and Kurama was inside his head, unable to try this delicious cake. He wanted to make it up to him, so he promised to make his wish true. And he did just that.</p>
<p>The next thing he clearly remembered from that day was his mother’s agonizing scream and his father pushing him off this friend of his while screaming for help. He had never seen his father so panicked before. One of his friends’ mother was also there, she had come to pick up her son. She was the one who called for an ambulance while Naruto’s father tried to stop the bleeding of his friend.</p>
<p>He remembered the eerie sound of the ambulance siren, the rushing of the men while they were tending to his friend, the tears in his mother’s eyes, and the terrifying anger on his father’s face as he slapped him, asking if he could even comprehend what he had just done. He had never hit him before. He tried to explain it wasn’t him, it was Kurama, but his father didn’t hear him. He snatched the bloody kitchen knife out of Naruto’s little hand and tossed it away. Yes, Naruto had stabbed his friend with it, multiple times.</p>
<p>His father jumped in his car and sped after the ambulance. His mother tried to clean him up as he was full of blood, but she had a hard time seeing through her tears. The other woman who was there called each of his friends’ parents to come and pick up their children. She didn’t explain the situation to them on the phone, she knew the children would eventually tell everything to their parents anyway. She didn’t want Naruto’s mom to deal with their anger right off the bat. She was surprisingly calm, but that was seriously needed in that situation.</p>
<p>Slowly, the house got empty. His mom was still crying and couldn’t stop asking Naruto why he had done that. Kushina’s eyes widened when her son calmly explained to her that she shouldn’t cry, he didn’t do anything, it was all Kurama. At that moment, Kushina realized her mistake. Kurama wasn’t an imaginary friend, it was something more. Something frightening.</p>
<p>Minato arrived home from the hospital well after midnight. Kushina was waiting for him wide awake, she couldn’t sleep or distract herself from the day’s events. When she saw her husband stepping into the house, she couldn’t say anything. All she could do was falling into Minato’s arms, crying.</p>
<p>Minato informed her that fortunately, the boy Naruto had stabbed would survive. However, it was too early to tell if he would suffer permanent damage to his internal organs, but the doctors were optimistic. He also explained that two policemen were waiting for Naruto outside of the house. They had to take him in for questioning. Kushina broke down in tears again. Minato tried to console her but to no avail. She eventually passed out of exhaustion. Minato laid her down on the sofa and went to wake Naruto up.</p>
<p>His dad was next to him during the questioning. His presence calmed Naruto. He realized he had done something bad, but at the same time, he knew it wasn’t his fault. He tried to explain to the officers that it was Kurama, not him. The officers asked for a psychologist after hearing his claims.</p>
<p>After long hours of talk, the psychologist explained to Minato and the officers that Naruto had a mental condition. In short, he had a split personality: there was him and there was Kurama. The psychologist expressed his opinion about the child’s case. He believed Naruto shouldn’t be charged for something he claimed Kurama had done. However, there was still a possibility he could be sent to a juvenile prison if the other boy’s parents wouldn’t withdraw from the legal procedure. The hospital had already pressed charges as they were obliged to do in cases like this.</p>
<p>After hearing this, Minato managed to persuade the boy’s parents to drop charges. He also promised they would never see Naruto again near their boy. Kushina moved away to Suna with her son the following week and they started with his medical help almost immediately.</p>
<p>“So?” Kushina raised an eyebrow at her son as he failed to answer her previous question.</p>
<p>“Oh, sorry, this ramen is just so good. I enjoyed it too much and kinda zoomed out,” Naruto grinned at her. “I don’t know how he is. We haven’t talked in years.”</p>
<p>It was a lie, but Naruto couldn’t just tell her he just talked to him today not so long ago, could he?</p>
<p>Minato studied his son’s face. He tried to detect any signs of him lying or telling half-truths but couldn’t find anything. Kushina stood up and went to hug Naruto’s shoulders. Mother and son laughed together, the previous topic was already long forgotten in their heads.</p>
<p>Minato let his lips form a small smile, but it was clear he was tense.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>So, we have learned some things about Naruto's past. I must say, as a first-time writer I jumped right into a very difficult story to write. I hope I can live up to your expectations though.</p>
<p>I would like to say special thanks to everyone who left kudos or a comment for me! You really made me happy, thank you all so much!</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0003"><h2>3. Chapter 3</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <strong>Chapter 3</strong>
</p>
<p>"Good morning Sakura-chan," Naruto greeted the pinkette enthusiastically as she entered the classroom the next morning.</p>
<p>"Good morning," Sakura smiled and made her way toward her desk. "I can't believe I was almost late," she sighed. "Where is Sasuke-kun?"</p>
<p>"Um, we hoped you knew something about him, Sakura," Hinata turned to her curiously. "We usually come to school together in the morning, but today when we stopped to pick him up his mother said he had already left."</p>
<p>"I'm sure he is fine. I don't know Sasuke well, but he doesn't seem like the damsel in distress type."</p>
<p>Hinata turned her head to look at Naruto. He was sitting casually on top of his desk with his arms crossed in front of his chest. He didn't seem worried which calmed Hinata a bit, but she reminded herself it would be strange if he was already worried about someone he had just met a day ago.</p>
<p>When Naruto entered the classroom for the first time the day before, Hinata forgot how to breathe for a moment. She found him gorgeous with his blindingly blond hair, shiny blue eyes, and tanned skin. She even considered those strange whisker-like birthmarks on both his cheeks adorable. He was so masculine and childlike at the same time she couldn't wrap her mind around it.</p>
<p>It was rare for her to like a boy, but her heartbeat went faster the moment she saw him smile. <em>'Sakura must feel somehow like this when she is looking at Sasuke-kun,'</em> she blushed at the thought. Sasuke was very popular among girls in school, it seemed like everyone wanted to be his girlfriend. He didn't care about any of them though.</p>
<p>Hinata often wondered if Sasuke was interested in anyone outside of school. He and Hinata were close friends, yes, but she wouldn't ask him something so personal. She had known him since they were children because their fathers did business together, but still, she didn't want to pry.</p>
<p>She spent a lot of time at the Uchiha manor ever since she was a child. Sometimes also her sister, Hanabi joined her, but mostly only Hinata could be found there, hanging out with Sasuke or his mother, Mikoto.</p>
<p>After the sudden death of Hinata's own mother, Mikoto became a second mother to her. She was the one who taught her the fundamentals of baking, which soon became one of Hinata's favorite things to do. She often turned to Mikoto when she needed advice or just a woman to talk to. Hinata liked Sakura and Ino, but she just couldn't be as open with them as she could be with Mikoto.</p>
<p>As for Sasuke's father, Fugaku, she didn't know him well. He wasn't home a lot, so she didn't really have a chance to know him better. The only times she interacted with him were the rare occasions when she stayed for dinner with the Uchihas. Sasuke talked about him sometimes though. Based on his words she imagined he was a strict but loving parent to his two sons.</p>
<p>She mentally giggled as she pondered about everyone always telling her how unlikely her friendship with Sasuke was. They didn't know Sasuke well enough though. Or, to be more exact, they only knew the current, not so pleasant version of Sasuke.</p>
<p>However, Hinata had also spent time with him as a child. An important detail everybody tended to forget. Hinata remembered how friendly and respectful Sasuke used to be toward everyone. He had helped Hinata to be a little more confident in herself. He had always made her laugh when she was sad.</p>
<p>He had changed so suddenly. The reason behind it wasn't clear for Hinata, not back then and not even now. She remembered spending time with a kind, mischievous Sasuke one day, and a few weeks later he was just rude to everyone, including Hinata. Something had happened in those few weeks, but nobody explained it to her. She had missed her friend dearly during those weeks, and when she finally got him back, he was a different Sasuke.</p>
<p>It took him months to act normal again around her, but he wasn't the same still. Hinata had accepted his new personality but she still wanted to know the reason behind the abrupt change. However, Sasuke's brother, Itachi asked her not to nag Sasuke about it, so she let it go.</p>
<p>Itachi was her first crush. When Hinata was around 12 years old, she always wanted to be around him. She had even tried to find out his favorite things just so she could surprise him with something he loved. Hinata guessed Itachi knew about her childish feelings all along, but he chose not to break her little heart. He most probably knew it was just a phase that would go away.</p>
<p>He was right, Hinata grew out of her crush eventually. She was glad for being able to experience these feelings though. She was sure this one-sided love had helped her grow emotionally. Also, she thought she had figured out her type. She had believed she wanted someone with dark hair, dark eyes, and a calm personality.</p>
<p>But now here she was, with her heart pounding so hard she was scared it would jump out of her chest. All for a boy who was the complete opposite of Itachi. Blond hair, ocean blue eyes, and a vibrant personality.</p>
<p>"You must be really worried, Hinata-chan," she heard Naruto's voice distantly. "You didn't even realize Anko-sensei came in."</p>
<p>Hinata snapped out of her thoughts. She realized Naruto was no longer sitting on his desk, but he was standing up and was pointing a finger in their science teacher's direction. She quickly jumped on her feet and turned to greet Anko-sensei with the rest of the class.</p>
<p>She was so embarrassed she couldn't help but blush. She must have stared at Naruto for an embarrassing amount of time.</p>
<p>First period started and she tried to distract her mind from the blond boy sitting behind her. She heard him moving his pen on paper, he most probably was taking notes. She also heard Sakura's bracelets gently slamming into each other next to him while she was also writing down the most important things.</p>
<p>She felt a little jealousy forming in her heart. She guessed Naruto liked Sakura. It wasn't that hard to notice, but who could blame him. Sakura was beautiful indeed. Sometimes Hinata wished to be more like Sakura or Ino, self-confident and outgoing. She tried to be like them, but it was just not who she was.</p>
<p>Sasuke always said she shouldn't wish to be like those two girls. He believed they were annoying, and he emphasized he just spent time with them because Hinata liked them. He always said Hinata was fine as she was, and if she changed, he would be forced to sever his bonds with his only real friend.</p>
<p>Hinata glanced at the empty seat on her right. <em>'Where are you, Sasuke-kun?'</em> she thought while biting her lower lip in frustration.</p>
<p>She usually wouldn't be worried about him but his behavior yesterday scared her. He generally wasn't talkative but yesterday he didn't even say a word. She couldn't see any of his signature smirks on his face the whole day. The only emotion she could trace on him was pure disgust.</p>
<p>Hinata was aware that Sasuke didn't like meeting new people. Or to be more precise, that he didn't like people in general. But still, she couldn't place the hostile aura she felt around him when Naruto was with them.</p>
<p>During lunch break, Hinata followed Sakura and Naruto to meet up with Ino and Kiba. While they were walking together to their usual lunch spot, she quickly texted Sasuke.</p>
<p><em>Where are you? Is everything okay?</em> She hit the send button and sat down at the table. She immediately felt Kiba slipping close to her, their legs were touching. She blushed and tried to move away from him, but he stubbornly followed her.</p>
<p>"Are you okay Hinata? You seem disturbed. Is it because Sasuke doesn't give a fuck about us and is having fun somewhere?" Kiba leaned closer to her and she tried to push him away gently. "Don't worry, I'm more fun than him anyway," he smiled at her.</p>
<p>"Kiba, you idiot, can you leave her some space? She is disturbed by you," Ino barked at him.</p>
<p>Kiba leaned back, still smiling at her. Hinata was grateful to Ino. She didn't like when Kiba invaded her personal space, though Kiba did that quite a lot. Usually, Sasuke would grab him and push him away, but he was not here now and Hinata couldn't see herself hurting Kiba's feelings by telling him to back off.</p>
<p>"Sorry, Hinata. I can make it up to you by taking you to the bakery today after school," he flashed a smile at her, showing his teeth.</p>
<p>"Oh, n-no problem, Kiba-kun. You d-don't h-have to," she muttered. She hated her stuttering, but it always came out when she was uncomfortable.</p>
<p>"Nah, it's my duty. And could you turn down a delicious cinnamon bun?" Kiba knew it was her favorite.</p>
<p>"W-well –"</p>
<p>"She has already said no," Sakura hit Kiba in the head. "Idiot."</p>
<p>"I was just trying to be nice. Why do you always feel the need to hit someone, Sakura?" Kiba whined. "No wonder Sasuke is not interested in you."</p>
<p>"What did you just say?" Sakura showed her clenched fist to Kiba who just tried to shield his head with his hands.</p>
<p>"Is it always like this?" Naruto asked cautiously.</p>
<p>"Most of the time. Kiba doesn't know the word 'no', Hinata is too nice to say anything to him, and Billboard Brow simply likes shoving her fists to anyone's face near her."</p>
<p>"What did you just call me, Ino?" Sakura turned to her friend furiously. They started yelling different insults at each other and Naruto just sat there rubbing the back of his neck while smiling nervously.</p>
<p>Hinata heard her phone buzzing on the table. She quickly checked it and felt relief immediately. Sasuke had messaged her back.</p>
<p>
  <em>I will pick you up after school. Don't worry.</em>
</p>
<p>She smiled. She was glad Sasuke was okay. It was so unlike him to skip school.</p>
<p>Naruto caught her gentle smile. He was pondering if he should say something when Hinata lifted her head and their eyes locked. She had beautiful, lavender eyes without a pupil. He had never seen anything like this before. He couldn't examine them for long though because she almost immediately looked down again. He could see the redness spreading on her cheeks.</p>
<p>He chuckled. What an interesting girl.</p>
<p>'<em>Let's put something even redder on those cheeks.'</em></p>
<p>Naruto's eyes twitched. What the hell was that thought again. Fortunately, the bell that signaled the end of lunch break saved him from following his weird idea. He sighed and walked back to the classroom with the others.</p>
<p>-x-x-x-x-</p>
<p>Hinata was waiting for Sasuke in front of the school after today's classes ended. Everybody else had gone home already. She was browsing through social media on her phone when she saw Sasuke's black Tesla pulling over next to her.</p>
<p>"Jump in," he glared at her from the driver's seat. Hinata got in and turned to place her backpack to the back seat.</p>
<p>"I thought you hate driving," she remarked while fastening her seatbelt.</p>
<p>"I don't. It's just more convenient for me to come to school with your driver."</p>
<p>Hinata and Sasuke came to school and went home together every day with Hinata's personal driver. She had always wanted a car, but her father refused the idea. Not because he couldn't afford it, not at all. He just thought Hinata wasn't confident enough to drive a car safely, so he had just got her a personal driver instead.</p>
<p>"Where were you today? We were worried. You should have at least texted me in the morning to let me know you aren't coming."</p>
<p>"I was driving around. I needed to clear my head."</p>
<p>"Something happened, right? You were different yesterday. Is it about Naruto-kun?" she didn't want to dance around the subject, she knew Sasuke didn't like that.</p>
<p>He just kept driving and ignored her question. He didn't have to answer anyway, Hinata knew from his silence that she hit the nail on the head. They stopped at a red light when Sasuke turned to look at her.</p>
<p>"Please don't talk to him anymore. Keep your distance from him."</p>
<p>Hinata chuckled at first, but when she looked into Sasuke's eyes she could see he wasn't joking around. He was dead serious.</p>
<p>"He's dangerous," the raven-haired boy added.</p>
<p>"Sasuke-kun, sorry to say this, but I think you are a bit paranoid."</p>
<p>Sasuke turned back to the light just in time to see it turn green. He didn't say anything again for long minutes. She was looking out the window, deep in thoughts. She couldn't understand what got into Sasuke so suddenly.</p>
<p>"I just know, okay? You just have to trust me," he said calmly as he stopped the car, arriving at Hinata's home. "I don't care about the others, but I don't want you to get hurt," he looked deeply into her eyes.</p>
<p>Hinata couldn't help but blush. She considered Sasuke only a friend, but she wasn't blind. He was devilishly handsome.</p>
<p>"I… I don't know Sasuke-kun… he seems like he wouldn't hurt a fly," she broke the eye contact.</p>
<p>"Yeah, exactly. He seems."</p>
<p>Hinata felt a chill running down her spine from Sasuke's tone. She quickly grabbed her backpack from the back seat and basically jumped out of the car.</p>
<p>"See you tomorrow, Sasuke-kun. I will send you today's notes tonight," she waved goodbye to her friend with a smile. It was hard for her to smile now. She realized something was off, but she tried to shrug it off.</p>
<p>She waited until she couldn't see Sasuke's car anymore then walked toward the house. Her younger sister, Hanabi was standing in the front door with hands on her hips.</p>
<p>"Ooooh, wasn't that Sasuke? With his car?" she asked with a smirk.</p>
<p>"Hanabi, please, not again…" Hinata moaned painfully.</p>
<p>Hanabi always got on her nerves when she talked about Sasuke. Somehow her little sister was obsessed with them getting together. Hinata had already told her several times that wasn't happening.</p>
<p>"You can tell me anything, you know," Hanabi winked at her.</p>
<p>Hinata just sighed and walked past her. She took off her shoes and made her way toward the living room. Her father was sitting on the couch, his eyes were focused on the TV. It was a rare sight, seeing the Hyuuga man watching anything, so after greeting him Hinata stood next to the sofa to check what he was so focused on.</p>
<p>It was the news. They showed two crying adults and a suspicious-looking alley. The headline spelled <em>'Murder in Konoha'</em>. Hinata gasped.</p>
<p>"What's this?" she couldn't say anything else. There hadn't been any murders in Konoha for years.</p>
<p>"A young girl was murdered yesterday. She was around your age. Someone homeless found her body today in that alley. I can't help but think it's linked to the murders in Suna," her father answered.</p>
<p>"But… how? The murderer was caught!"</p>
<p>"Yes, but he could have followers. A lot of people are sick in the head," her father stated. "Listen, Hinata. I don't want you to go anywhere alone after school for a while. You can be with your friends if you want but I prefer if you come here with them. Or, if you do go out please at least be with Sasuke. If my hunch is right and this is linked with the Suna murders, there will be more bodies in the next months. I don't want to see you in the morgue."</p>
<p>"Yes, Father," Hinata couldn't force any more words out of herself. She was utterly shocked.</p>
<p>She quickly checked her social media. It was full of information on the case. Her friends were already talking about it in the group chat. And then she saw something that made her heart race. She even forgot about the whole murder thing.</p>
<p>
  <em>Uzumaki Naruto wants to add you as a friend.</em>
</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0004"><h2>4. Chapter 4</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <strong>Chapter 4</strong>
</p>
<p>The next days were hectic at school. Everybody was talking about the recent murder. Some students claimed they knew the victim. She apparently went to a rival high school and was in her last year.</p>
<p>The students surely didn't respect the dead. According to rumors, even photos of her dead body were circulating among the high schoolers. Hinata never saw the alleged photos, so she couldn't tell if it was true or not.</p>
<p>During these days, Hinata respected her father's wishes and didn't go anywhere alone. She always asked Sasuke or Sakura to accompany her if she needed to go somewhere after school. She also tried distracting herself from the murder. She was disgusted by how some students saw this case as something overly exciting.</p>
<p>She studied hard as always and had fun with her friends at school. Sasuke didn't skip school anymore and occasionally joined their group in conversations again. However, he completely ignored Naruto. The blond must have sensed Sasuke holding a grudge against him because he didn't even try to talk to him even once.</p>
<p>Hinata figured it must have been hard for him. It was clear that Naruto liked talking to everyone he could. He had a lot of buddies by now. He was still having lunch with their group every day though. Hinata wished she could join them too, but Sasuke had other ideas lately.</p>
<p>During lunch breaks, Sasuke gently took her by her elbow and directed her to another table to eat. She could always see the hurt in Kiba's eyes when he realized she wouldn't be eating with them again. She usually also spotted some jealousy in Sakura's jade eyes. Hinata wanted to tell her she would change places with her any day if that meant she could eat with Naruto.</p>
<p>Hinata suspected Sasuke didn't want to eat lunch with their group anymore because of the blond boy. She knew he didn't particularly like Kiba, Ino, or Sakura, but he had never objected to eating with them before. She was sure it was all about Sasuke's weird perception of Naruto. She didn't want to have a quarrel with Sasuke though, so she chose not to say anything. It didn't really look like Naruto was sad because Hinata wasn't there anyway.</p>
<p>Hinata often glanced at their table during lunch. She usually saw Kiba suspiciously eyeing her and Sasuke, Ino having some small disagreement with Sakura, and Naruto admiring the pink-haired girl. Yeah, admiring her. At least, it looked like that from Hinata's perspective.</p>
<p>"You're doing it again," Sasuke noted. It was lunch break again, and the two of them were eating separately from the others.</p>
<p>"What?" Hinata snorted uncharacteristically.</p>
<p>"Staring at them."</p>
<p>"Sorry, I just still don't understand why we can't eat with them anymore," Hinata felt her voice being annoyed, but she couldn't help it.</p>
<p>"It's not permanent. We can eat with them again as soon as Naruto disappears."</p>
<p>"I don't understand. I know, I know," she said quickly as she saw Sasuke opening his mouth to explain for the hundredth time that Naruto was dangerous. "You just never mentioned why you think he's alarming. It's hard for me to accept it without a proper explanation."</p>
<p>"What if he killed that girl?" Sasuke's question caught her off guard and she let out a small laugh.</p>
<p>"What? Are you serious?" her laugh froze on her face as she realized it wasn't a joke.</p>
<p>"I'm just asking. It's a possibility."</p>
<p>"It's also a possibility that you killed her. Or that I killed her. Saying it was me is as ridiculous as saying it was Naruto. Until they catch the killer, literally everyone could be the culprit, but most people are just not likely," Hinata explained while carefully eating her lunch. She truly couldn't believe Sasuke seriously suggested Naruto would be the killer.</p>
<p>"Why are you defending him?" Sasuke leaned back in his chair and crossed his arms in front of his chest.</p>
<p>"I'm not defending him I'm just saying you're being paranoid. You don't even know him."</p>
<p>Sasuke didn't say a word, just stared at Hinata. She tried to ignore his piercing gaze on her and continued eating her lunch. He continued glaring at her shamelessly for some time, then just gathered his stuff and left her there without a word. Hinata shook her head in frustration and quickly finished with the remaining of her lunch.</p>
<p>"Lovers' quarrel?"</p>
<p>She was about to open her chocolate bar which she wanted to eat as a dessert when she heard his voice. She quickly raised her head and her lavender eyes locked with cerulean ones. She almost dropped her chocolate bar.</p>
<p>"N-Naruto-kun…" she blushed and looked away. "N-no, we are n-not l-lovers."</p>
<p>She couldn't believe how quickly she could go from the confident, relaxed Hinata who she was with Sasuke to the stuttering, blushing wreck she was with Naruto.</p>
<p>"Can I sit down?" the blond asked, but he was already sitting down. Hinata just nodded. "So, what are you then? I mean, you always eat together. Just the two of you together, ya know," he grinned at her.</p>
<p>She started fidgeting with her fingers. Did everybody think that? That they were lovers? It would certainly explain why Sakura wasn't as cheerful as she used to be around Hinata. It would also explain why other girls in school had started staring at her all of a sudden. She had definitely heard some whispers behind her back in the past few days.</p>
<p>"Um… w-we are just f-friends. T-that's all," she muttered.</p>
<p>"You don't have to be shy with me, Hinata-chan," he cheerfully boxed her right shoulder. She almost fainted. "Although it's true you could do better. I don't want to hurt your feelings or anything, but he's kinda morose, ya know. At first, I thought he can't talk," he laughed.</p>
<p>Hinata wanted to sink into the ground. She felt heat burning her cheeks. She was just not prepared to talk to Naruto now.</p>
<p>"Anyway, if you're happy, I guess it's cool," he winked at her. "I didn't only come here to embarrass your boyfriend, don't worry. You see, my birthday is next week and I want to throw a birthday party next Saturday. Would you like to come?"</p>
<p>Hinata gasped. Did she hear it right? Did Naruto actually invite her to his birthday party? She wanted to accept the invitation without hesitation but Sasuke's warning about the blond was still on her mind. A shadow passed through Hinata's face. What was she thinking? Sasuke was talking nonsense.</p>
<p>"Sasuke can come too," Naruto must have noticed her expression because he quickly added.</p>
<p>"S-Sure… T-Thank you," Hinata forced herself to look into Naruto's eyes. Oh god, she could faint any minute now.</p>
<p>"Cool, I will text you the details later," Naruto jumped on his feet, patted Hinata's shoulder, and walked away.</p>
<p>Hinata sighed. She managed not to faint, that was good. She was also invited to Naruto's birthday party, which was also good. Sasuke was invited too, so she didn't have to worry about her father. She knew he would let her go if Sasuke was there, too.</p>
<p>But the problem at the same time was also Sasuke. She knew he would try to keep her away from the party. However, she had already accepted the invitation, so she couldn't just not show up and hurt Naruto's feelings. No, she had to do something about Sasuke.</p>
<p>She was pondering her possibilities when she heard the signaling bell. She quickly grabbed her stuff and ran to class. Sasuke was already there and she could see Sakura sitting on Hinata's desk, leaning suggestively toward her dark-haired friend while talking to him. Hinata walked up to them and waited until Sakura noticed her.</p>
<p>"Ah, Hinata," Sakura jumped off her desk. "Sorry, I was just telling about this new movie to Sasuke. We should go to see it together."</p>
<p>"Oh, it's okay Sakura. You know, I will be busy in the next few days with studying, so why don't you two go together?" Hinata smiled at Sakura genuinely. Just like Naruto, Sakura most probably thought they were together with Sasuke. Hinata wanted to debunk that false impression as soon as possible.</p>
<p>"I'm not going anywhere without you," Sasuke snorted. There went Hinata's chance to reassure Sakura there was nothing romantical going on between them. Hinata could swear she even heard Naruto silently giggle behind them.</p>
<p>Before Hinata could answer, their Math teacher entered the classroom to start the lesson. Sakura swiftly moved back to her chair, and Hinata sighed in defeat. She would have to talk to Sasuke about this whole situation soon.</p>
<p>-x-x-x-x-</p>
<p>Today was Friday. Their group gathered together after classes to discuss what to do in the afternoon. Last Friday they had all agreed on just going home because of the recent murder. This week however nothing malicious had happened in the city, so everybody relaxed a bit.</p>
<p>"We should go to the arcade," Kiba suggested. "We haven't been there in ages. It will be so sweet when I beat Naruto's and Sasuke's ass in that game where –"</p>
<p>"Hinata and I are not going," Sasuke interjected rudely.</p>
<p>"What?" Hinata turned to him bewildered.</p>
<p>"You heard it," Sasuke just stared at her coldly. There was a pregnant silence between the group. Nobody knew what to say.</p>
<p>"You know, Sasuke, I think you should let her come if she wants to. It's okay if you aren't in the mood but she has her own will, ya know. We will look after her, you don't have to worry," Naruto tried reassuring Sasuke with one of his signature grins, but all he got in return was a deadly stare on Sasuke's part.</p>
<p>Sasuke's constant icy glare made Naruto uncomfortable. He didn't get why Sasuke was so hostile toward him. He now definitely believed it was a mistake telling Hinata she could bring him to his party next week.</p>
<p>"I-it's okay, N-Naruto-kun… I… I h-have some t-things t-to discuss w-with Sa-Sasuke-kun anyway," Hinata muttered. She just wanted this awkward situation to end.</p>
<p>"Oh, okay then," Naruto shot a surprised look toward Hinata, but he decided not to press the topic further. "Let's go guys then."</p>
<p>They waved goodbye to the group and Hinata called her driver to pick them up. They waited for him in complete silence. Hinata had never felt uncomfortable around Sasuke before, but now she definitely wasn't relaxed around him. He had always been a bit sour but ever since Naruto started attending their school, Sasuke had become even worse.</p>
<p>Hinata's driver arrived and they got in the car. As usual, Sasuke sat in the passenger's seat and Hinata took her place in the middle back seat.</p>
<p>"Hidan-san, could you please take Sasuke-kun too to our house?" Hinata leaned forward and turned to Sasuke. "Is it okay for you too, Sasuke-kun?"</p>
<p>Sasuke's expression showed a slight surprise but he nodded. It was rare for Hinata to ask him to go to her house. When they wanted to spend some time together or study together, they usually went to the Uchiha manor.</p>
<p>"Of course, Miss!" Hidan cheered and started driving.</p>
<p>Hinata leaned back in her seat. She was determined to get to the bottom of Sasuke's recent behavior. She just hoped Hanabi wouldn't be home or else her little sister would embarrass her in front of Sasuke completely.</p>
<p>She felt her phone buzzing in her skirt's pocket. She quickly took it out to check it. Her heart stopped for a second after reading the name and the message on her screen.</p>
<p><em>I'm sorry you couldn't come. We can hang out tomorrow if you want to talk about what happened. </em>It was Naruto. It was the first text he had ever sent to Hinata since they had become friends on social media.</p>
<p>She quickly texted back. <em>Okay. We can go for a walk if it's good.</em></p>
<p><em>Cool. Let's meet at 10 at Hashirama park. </em>The reply came almost immediately.</p>
<p>Hinata texted back an okay and locked her phone. Her heart was pounding in her chest and she felt herself blushing. She would meet up with Naruto tomorrow. Just the two of them. She quickly glanced at Sasuke who was looking out the window. Good thing he didn't turn to face her, he would have immediately known something was up.</p>
<p>When they arrived at the Hyuuga residence, Hinata signaled him to follow her upstairs to her room. It looked like nobody was home, apart from some maids who were doing some cleaning and making dinner.</p>
<p>Sasuke stepped into Hinata's room following the girl and closed the door behind them. Her room was quite big, suitable for a Hyuuga. It had an almost oversized double bed and a wide desk fully covered with schoolbooks. In one corner of the room, there was a smaller area with a sofa and a coffee table to sit and talk. She also had her own bathroom and a dressing room.</p>
<p>Almost everything in the room was lavender, the girl just loved that color. Also, it was very organized and clean, except for her desk. Sasuke guessed the maids cleaned her room almost every day.</p>
<p>Hinata put her backpack next to her desk to the floor and signaled Sasuke to do the same. She then sat on her bed and Sasuke leaned against her desk, folding his arms.</p>
<p>"So, what is this about?" he inquired. He knew if Hinata invited him over, she wanted to talk about something serious.</p>
<p>"Don't you want to sit down?" Hinata glanced at her chair next to her desk.</p>
<p>"No, I'm fine."</p>
<p>She hadn't actually thought through what she wanted to say, so there was only silence between them for some time. She wanted to know so many things but didn't know what to ask exactly. She felt a weird emotional distance from Sasuke which she had never felt before.</p>
<p>"Did you know everybody at school thinks we are lovers?" she blurted out the first thing she could think about and blushed.</p>
<p>"Yeah, does that bother you?" Sasuke asked with a smirk. Hinata gasped, she didn't expect Sasuke to be aware of the situation.</p>
<p>"Um, well…" she started fidgeting with her fingers. She rarely did that in front of him. "In a way, yes. I mean, Sakura is my friend and you know how she feels about you. I don't want to hurt her feelings even if this is just a misunderstanding."</p>
<p>"But is it really? A misunderstanding, I mean," Sasuke raised an eyebrow at her.</p>
<p>Hinata looked at him puzzled. She felt oddly uncomfortable. Maybe they should have gone to the Uchiha manor.</p>
<p>"W-Well, a-anyway... I think we should make it clear to the others that we're just friends." Sasuke didn't say anything so she continued. "You know, I wanted to go to the arcade today. I know you have this strange feeling about Naruto-kun, but I can assure you he's a good guy. He even invited us to his birthday party next Saturday."</p>
<p>Sasuke's eyes twitched when he heard what Hinata just said. He knew exactly what Hinata wanted to say next.</p>
<p>"I want to go, and I will. With or without you."</p>
<p>Sasuke frowned. Hinata looked determined so it was off the table to convince her not to go. He could still tell her father about it. He was sure Hiashi would forbid Hinata to go to the party. However, if he made that choice, there would be no going back. Hinata would most probably push him away forever. So, there remained only one option.</p>
<p>"Fine, I will go with you," he forced out the words between his teeth.</p>
<p>Hinata looked dazed. She didn't expect to convince Sasuke so easily. She was at a loss for words. She wasn't sure how to proceed from here.</p>
<p>"Th-Thank you," she stuttered.</p>
<p>"But don't expect me to have fun or something. I will just be there to keep an eye on you."</p>
<p>She nodded. She didn't know what else to say. Deep down, she hoped Sasuke would give up on his grudge against Naruto and he would be able to form a friendship with the blond eventually. However, things weren't looking great on that front.</p>
<p>She felt a slight tension in the room between her and Sasuke. She wanted to ask about Naruto again, but the very same tension held her back. She really wanted to get to the bottom of the whole situation but didn't want to push Sasuke too much. He always had a reason for everything he did, but Hinata just failed to see the reason behind his current behavior.</p>
<p>Maybe tomorrow she could ask Naruto about it. She was uncertain if the blond had any idea about the whole thing, but she figured he would at least have some thoughts about it. Any little piece of information could help Hinata decode something about the whole affair. She was sure by now that Sasuke wouldn't give her any clues, so she had to find them elsewhere.</p>
<p>"Since I'm already here, I have some questions about the Math problem we have to solve for Monday," Sasuke turned to Hinata's schoolbooks on the desk. "Mind if we solve it together?"</p>
<p>"Oh sure, let's check it," Hinata smiled and moved to her backpack to take out her Math notes.</p>
<p>-x-x-x-x-</p>
<p>It was already past 10 pm when Naruto and his new friends left the arcade. It was fun, Naruto had never been to any arcade before. His friends in Suna weren't the type to go to one. However, Naruto decided he would definitely take them to one if he ever went back to visit them.</p>
<p>He was kind of a natural talent when it came to playing video games but still, he couldn't compete with Kiba's experience and got his ass whooped several times. He had managed to win a few rounds, however.</p>
<p>He had also enjoyed watching Sakura and Ino playing a dancing game. He couldn't help but think about Hinata playing that game with them. He didn't like the way Sasuke ordered the girl around, but he didn't want to pry into their relationship. At the same time, he didn't want to leave Hinata without any help, so he had decided to text her.</p>
<p>He wanted to give her a chance to pour her heart out if she felt the need. He thought the girl would refuse the idea but to his surprise, she had agreed to meet for a talk. Naruto was happy he could be a great friend to her.</p>
<p>He was walking home crossing a park while contemplating what he should say to the indigo-haired girl tomorrow when he spotted a man sitting on a bench. He looked drunk.</p>
<p>'<em>Easy target,' </em>he heard Kurama's voice in his head. He stopped walking and just stared at the man. He didn't seem to notice him, he was kind of unconscious, probably from drinking too many beers. Naruto glanced at the empty beer bottles next to him.</p>
<p>'<em>A glass bottle, how nice. We could just break one, slice his neck with it and go home. Easy.'</em></p>
<p>Naruto's eyes twitched. He had been hearing Kurama talking to him more frequently in the past few months. He figured it was because he had stopped taking his meds. He had even considered taking them again at some point, but Kurama talked him out of it. <em>'You are not crazy, you are just different,'</em> he always said.</p>
<p>Naruto didn't feel crazy either. Sure, he was aware that it wasn't common to have your other personality talking to you in your head. His therapist in Suna had explained that to him several times. He also knew it was wrong to follow Kurama's words. But still, Kurama was the other side of him, and when he let him take control, it felt nice. Or at least it didn't feel entirely wrong.</p>
<p>Naruto looked around. He didn't see anyone nearby. He stepped closer to the man and took one of the empty beer bottles in his hand. He looked at it, still unsure what to do.</p>
<p>'<em>Nah, don't be like that. I want it, you want it. There's nothing wrong with that. He looks like he would be better off dead anyway.' </em>Naruto tightened his grip on the bottle. <em>'You don't have to do it. I can do it for you if you want.'</em></p>
<p>Naruto nodded. He didn't want to do it but somehow, he felt like he needed the feeling of taking someone's life. So with that, he let Kurama's thoughts fill his mind and let control out of his hands.</p>
<p>The second he stopped struggling against Kurama he immediately felt better. Relieved, even. He broke the bottle on the side of the bench. The drunk man awakened hearing the noise and turned to look at Naruto with unfocused eyes. The moment he locked eyes with the blond, he felt a shiver running down his spine.</p>
<p>He tried to shield himself with his hands, but he was too drunk, and Naruto was too fast. He sliced his neck in an instant. <em>'How boring,'</em> Kurama complained. Naruto was staring at the now dead man with a completely neutral expression.<em> 'Let's have some fun.' </em>He raised the bloody piece of glass once more and started stabbing the man all around. He just couldn't stop.</p>
<p>When he finally stopped, the man's face was barely recognizable and Naruto himself was covered in his blood. <em>'Shit, you overdid a bit, don't you think?'</em> Kurama was brave enough to even mock him.</p>
<p>The adrenaline started flashing out of him and he had to figure his next move out. He took a plastic bag from his backpack. His mom had given him an apple in it in the morning, and after eating the fruit he had kept it. He put the broken glass in it and put it back in his backpack.</p>
<p>He moved away from the man to a nearby area with more trees and bushes. It would be unfortunate if someone saw him like this next to a dead body.</p>
<p>Once he felt himself safe from the eyes of random passersby, he took his water bottle out of his backpack. He still had some water in it, good. He poured it into his hands and started rubbing the blood off his skin. Once he was clean he felt much calmer.</p>
<p>He now had to do something about his bloody clothes. He was still wearing his school uniform, which consisted of black pants and a white short-sleeved shirt. In school, he also wore his gray-and-black striped tie tied loosely around his neck and his gray school vest over his shirt as it was obligatory, but he had taken them off in the arcade. He wished he had kept the vest on though because now his white shirt was very visibly covered in blood.</p>
<p>He inspected his pants, but he couldn't see bloody spots on them. He either managed not to get any blood on it or it was just not visible due to its dark color. He had to do something about his shirt though. He knew he couldn't let his mom see it. It couldn't pass as a nosebleed for sure. But first, he had to go home somehow without having the police called on him.</p>
<p>He tested the condition of the blood on his shirt with his finger. It had kind of dried already. He took his school vest out of his backpack and took it on over his shirt. He checked if he could see any blood that wasn't covered by the vest but couldn't detect any. Lucky.</p>
<p>He carefully looked around to see if there was someone nearby. When he didn't spot anybody, he came out of the bushes. He continued walking home. He was thinking about taking the bus, but he felt like walking instead. His home wasn't so far from this park anyway.</p>
<p>It took him approximately 20 more minutes to get home. He checked the time on his phone. It was almost midnight already. He hoped his parents were asleep.</p>
<p>He opened the door and immediately saw the lights being switched on. His mom was standing in the hallway and she looked very angry. Unlucky.</p>
<p>"Where were you? You know how worried I was?" she demanded an answer, hands on her hips.</p>
<p>"Eh, Mom, I'm so sorry," Naruto smiled at his mother while rubbing the back of his neck. "You see, we went to this awesome arcade with my friends and I –" he couldn't finish his explanation as Kushina jumped to him and hugged him tightly.</p>
<p>Naruto's eyes widened in surprise. <em>'I hope she can't smell the blood or something,'</em> was the only thing he could think about. Kushina let him go with tears forming in her eyes. She was so relieved to see Naruto, she couldn't help before but to think about the worst.</p>
<p>"Next time at least send a text, you stupid," she murmured.</p>
<p>"Will do next time," Naruto took her hand and gave her a quick kiss on the cheek.</p>
<p>He shot one more apologetic look at his mother and quickly ran upstairs to his room. He closed the door behind himself and let out a painful moan. He swiftly took off his vest and his bloody shirt. He would have to throw the shirt away somewhere where police wouldn't find it. He decided he should wait with that however, so he just tossed the shirt under his bed.</p>
<p>At least he didn't have to worry about his mom finding the bloody piece of clothing in his room. She respected his private space, even though he was so unorganized. His room was messy. He had clothes all over the floor and it was rather hard to find anything. He always just put his stuff on the nearest surface he could reach, so nothing had a permanent place.</p>
<p>Kushina had nagged him a lot about cleaning up when they were living in Suna. She didn't say anything to him since they moved back to Konoha, but Naruto was sure she would force him to clean up a bit soon.</p>
<p>Naruto took off his pants and jumped into bed. He needed sleep, today was a hectic day. Also, he would need to wake up early in the morning to meet up with Hinata.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0005"><h2>5. Chapter 5</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Hinata was anxiously waiting for Naruto at Hashirama park. They had agreed on meeting there at 10, but it was already nearing 11 and Naruto was nowhere to be found. Hinata checked her phone for the hundredth time in the last twenty minutes. No texts from Naruto. Did he forget? Or he wasn't serious about meeting with her at all?</p>
<p>Hinata tightened her grip around her cellphone. Should she text Naruto? No, she shouldn't bother him. She felt like a fool. She had arrived 20 minutes earlier than the arranged time, just to be sure she wouldn't be late. She had been here for almost an hour and a half now.</p>
<p>She had even dressed up for him. It was unusually warm for October, so she wore a lilac skirt which ended just under her knee with a white long-sleeved blouse. She completed her outfit with her favorite pair of lilac sandals and her small, lavender-colored purse. She wanted Naruto to see her in something else than her school uniform. She hoped he would notice her if she wore cute clothes. She wanted him to look at her the way he looked at Sakura.</p>
<p>She didn't understand herself. She met Naruto only two weeks ago and they didn't even talk that much. But still, she felt herself being pulled toward him. Was this love? Was it even possible to love someone you didn't even know?</p>
<p>She looked up at the sky. <em>'Naruto-kun's eyes are bluer,'</em> the thought passed through her mind like a warm breeze. She quickly shut her eyes closed when she felt tears forming in them. She didn't want to cry over a boy she had only known for mere two weeks, but she was so disappointed. She had really believed Naruto would come.</p>
<p>"Hinata-chan, I'm so sorry!" she heard Naruto's voice all of a sudden.</p>
<p>She opened her eyes and turned her teary gaze at the blond boy who was running toward her. He looked like he had run a marathon. When he arrived next to Hinata, he panted heavily and crouched down to relax a bit.</p>
<p>"Sorry, Hinata-chan, I slept in," he sighed apologetically. "Hey, why are you crying? Did someone hurt you?" he straightened up and leaned closer to her to check if she had been hurt.</p>
<p>"Ah, n-no N-Naruto-kun… It's j-just the w-wind," she muttered as she instinctively leaned back to create distance between them. Hinata thought Naruto was just like Kiba, he didn't quite understand personal space.</p>
<p>"Okay. But you know you can tell me anything. That's why we're here, ya know," he smiled at her and gently patted her head.</p>
<p>Hinata flushed and concentrated on not to faint. She couldn't grasp why she was always so awkward when Naruto was near her. His whole being just made her go crazy. She had never felt this lovestruck around any boy, even around Itachi in the past. She started believing in love at first sight.</p>
<p>Hinata could see Naruto didn't dress up for her the way she did for him. He wore an orange hoodie, with black joggers and orange sneakers. He looked cool, but she was sure he would wear something else if he considered today a date.</p>
<p>"I see you like orange," Hinata blurted out. She blushed as realization hit her about what she had just said. It sounded so stupid.</p>
<p>"I do," he grinned at her.</p>
<p>Hinata hadn't prepared any topics in advance to talk about, so she just stood there, playing embarrassingly with the fabric of her skirt. She desperately tried to come up with something interesting to say. She wanted to avoid voicing her silly thoughts, all similar to the one she had just said out loud a minute ago. Naruto giggled seeing her antics and motioned her to start walking. They came here for a walk and talk anyway.</p>
<p>They walked around in the park in silence for some minutes. Naruto repeatedly glanced at Hinata, whose cheeks were still visibly red. He didn't understand the girl at all. He recalled the conversation they had had at school the day before. Hinata had told him that she and Sasuke weren't dating, yet those two were the only ones not coming to the arcade. Sure, Hinata wanted to join them, but she didn't resist much when Sasuke objected to having some fun. Naruto was sure they went somewhere together.</p>
<p>"So, what did you do yesterday?" he decided to start the conversation.</p>
<p>"Um, S-Sasuke-kun c-came over." Bingo, he knew it.</p>
<p>"I thought you two weren't together," Naruto playfully elbowed Hinata's side.</p>
<p>"W-we are not!" she yelped.</p>
<p>"I really don't understand you two," Naruto pinched the bridge of his nose and let out a painful moan. Love was just too confusing for him. "Will you bring him to the party next Saturday?"</p>
<p>"Yes, we will be there. Speaking of which…" she went silent for a minute as if she was trying to find the best words for what she wanted to say. "I'm sorry if it's a strange thing to ask but… Have you ever met Sasuke-kun? I mean… I mean before you came to our school." Hinata was surprised she could talk to Naruto without stuttering. Maybe she was getting comfortable around him.</p>
<p>"I was thinking about the same thing. He definitely doesn't like me for some reason, and I don't remember anything I may have done to piss him off like that in these two weeks. Also…" he paused for a moment. "When I look at him, I feel like I should remember him from somewhere."</p>
<p>Hinata nodded in understanding. She still didn't have enough information to completely accept Sasuke's hostile behavior toward the blond, but she surely had new, valuable information now. She was certain the two had met before. It would explain why Sasuke always talked about Naruto like he knew him. It was odd that Naruto didn't remember Sasuke, but it could be easily explained by them being kids the last time they met.</p>
<p>They kept walking and Naruto was babbling about all kinds of things. Hinata tried her best to focus and react to his questions, but she was deep in thought. She tried to identify any clues in Naruto's behavior that showed he could be dangerous, as Sasuke had warned her. Of course, she couldn't find any.</p>
<p>She had been certain that talking to Naruto would help in clarifying the situation, but in fact, it just made her more confused. Was it possible that Sasuke was confusing Naruto with someone else?</p>
<p>She was pondering this possibility and didn't pay much attention to her surroundings for a second. That second was enough for her to stumble on a bigger rock. Naruto tried to catch her to prevent her from falling, but his reaction was too slow. Hinata landed roughly on her knees.</p>
<p>"Uff…" she yelped. <em>'Naruto-kun must think I'm a total klutz,' </em>she thought frantically.</p>
<p>"Are you okay, Hinata-chan?" Naruto quickly jumped next to her and picked up her purse she had dropped from the ground.</p>
<p>"Y-yes, I think i-it's just a l-little g-graze," she blushed as Naruto gently touched her back to help her stand up. He directed her to a nearby bench to sit down for a bit.</p>
<p>Hinata felt a burning sensation in her knees. It didn't truly hurt, it was just uncomfortable. She lifted the hem of her skirt slightly to check the damage, just in case. She was relieved it was nothing serious, it was only a graze indeed. However, she saw a thin streak of blood streaming down her leg from her right knee.</p>
<p>She raised her head to ask Naruto to give her a tissue from her purse he was holding, but when her eyes found his face she could only gasp. His eyes were focused on the bloody spot on her knee. She could see his lips being slightly parted, his eyes twitching, and his hands shaking a little.</p>
<p>"N-Naruto-kun…" she wanted to ask him if he was okay. She guessed he could have a phobia of blood, a lot of people did. She was about to hide the trail of blood from him with her hands when he reached out suddenly and trailed the thin, scarlet stream with his index finger.</p>
<p>Hinata was startled for a moment, but when she overcame her initial breathlessness, she slapped his hand away. She was shocked by her own doing. She had never done anything like this before.</p>
<p>However, it was enough for Naruto to snap out of his trance-like state. He massaged his hand. It hurt. Hinata had slapped it hard.</p>
<p>They stared at each other in silence for some minutes which felt like an eternity for both of them.</p>
<p>'<em>Why did I do that? No, why did he do that? What was this all about? He looked like he was kind of mesmerized by the blood. Maybe… is this what Sasuke-kun meant when he said he's dangerous? But… is this really that big of a problem that we should keep our distance from him? There must be something more…'</em></p>
<p>'<em>Why did I do that? Shit, Kurama, why did you tell me to do that? She's afraid of me now… if she tells about this to anybody, I'm screwed. I must have looked like some psycho. Everybody will think I'm insane. I've told you already, Kurama, we can't be like that around friends… Shit…'</em></p>
<p>"Hinata-chan, I –"</p>
<p>"It's okay," she blurted out while she quickly snapped her purse from Naruto's hand. She swiftly searched for a tissue and cleaned up the half-dried blood on her leg.</p>
<p>"I'm not –"</p>
<p>"I have to go," she cut him off. "I will see you in school." She bowed her head to Naruto, although it looked more like a nod than a bow. She turned her back to him and walked away as fast as she could.</p>
<p>She phoned her driver to pick her up as soon as possible. She felt ashamed for hurting Naruto's feelings by leaving him behind so suddenly, but she needed time to think. For the first time since she had known the blond, she felt an odd aura around him. Something that screamed danger, but she tried to push this particular feeling to the back of her mind.</p>
<p>She pinched her cheeks. <em>'You're being paranoid, Hinata… just like Sasuke-kun, you're thinking nonsense. It wasn't that big of a deal. It was just an odd reaction to blood, it can happen to anyone.'</em></p>
<p>She knew she was overreacting, but she couldn't ignore the shivers running down her spine when she remembered Naruto's chilling expression.</p>
<p>-x-x-x-x-</p>
<p>Naruto was laying on his bed. He closed his eyes and tried to empty his mind.</p>
<p>He wanted to disappear.</p>
<p>He didn't want to remember the stunned expression on Hinata's face. This time he screwed up badly. He should've been stronger and not giving in to Kurama's provocation. But the blood… he just lost it. Whenever he saw blood, it just pulled him like a magnet.</p>
<p>He covered his eyes with his right arm. His head was pounding badly. Even simply existing hurt.</p>
<p>'<em>Stop it. Who cares about the girl? What can she do to you? Nothing.'</em></p>
<p>"Shut up!" Naruto screamed and held his head, trying to shut out his everlasting companion. He crawled in a fetal position and tried his best to ignore Kurama's voice in his head.</p>
<p>He oddly desired to see his new therapist now. He had gone to talk to Dr. Tsunade twice already. She was a bit scary, but surprisingly, she was an overall great person to talk to. She didn't only ask questions with the sole purpose of trapping Naruto and catching him lying, unlike his previous therapist in Suna. Dr. Tsunade was trying to integrate Kurama into Naruto.</p>
<p>At their first session together, Naruto told her his lie about not talking to Kurama anymore. She didn't buy it. However, she reassured him that she wouldn't tell a word to his parents about any of the things they were talking about during therapy. She was obliged to inform his parents because he was a minor, but he would soon be 18 anyway, so she was willing to break the rule. Naruto sensed he could trust her, so he admitted talking with Kurama occasionally.</p>
<p>Naruto was no fool though. He didn't mention anything about the frequent contact between Kurama and him, about not taking his meds and you know, about going around killing people. He figured she would call the police on him immediately, but honestly, he wouldn't even blame her.</p>
<p>Sometimes he himself also contemplated calling the police, but Kurama always talked him out of it. Naruto didn't kill anybody anyway, it was all Kurama.</p>
<p>"Naruto, dinner is ready!" he heard his mother's voice from downstairs.</p>
<p>"Not hungry, thank you!" he shouted back and crawled under his blanket. He just wanted to sleep.</p>
<p>He could already feel his mind being dragged into sweet dreams when he heard his phone buzzing from the distance. He moaned. He didn't want to talk to anyone. He was determined not to open his eyes but after a few minutes, he just sighed.</p>
<p>He wouldn't fall asleep again anyway until he checked who had messaged him. If one of his friends needed to talk to him, he would listen. He was that kind of a guy.</p>
<p>He opened his eyes and reached for his phone on his nightstand.</p>
<p>
  <em>Am I uninvited from your party?</em>
</p>
<p>Hinata…</p>
<p><em>Of course not, </em>he texted back. He was waiting anxiously for the reply for long minutes, but it didn't come. Well, if she texted him, she would be willing to talk to him, he figured. He started typing.</p>
<p>
  <em>Sorry for today. I don't know why I did that.</em>
</p>
<p>
  <em>I'm sorry, too. I shouldn't have hit you. Let's forget it. Friends?</em>
</p>
<p>
  <em>Yeah.</em>
</p>
<p>It was a brief conversation, but he felt a lot better after it. He was grateful to Hinata because she was still willing to talk to him. He had been certain he lost a friend today.</p>
<p>He fell asleep with a smile on his face.</p>
<p>-x-x-x-x-</p>
<p>Hinata pressed her cellphone against her chest and sighed. She wasn't sure she had made the right decision by contacting Naruto. She had fought with her thoughts the whole day. She really, <em>really </em>liked Naruto, but today's events got her thinking. Was it possible that Naruto had some childhood trauma regarding blood that made him behave like that?</p>
<p>She wanted to tell Sasuke about it, but she knew he would be furious because Hinata had met up with Naruto alone when he had explicitly asked her not to.</p>
<p>No, she couldn't tell anybody about this. She had to figure this whole thing out herself. She decided she wouldn't treat Naruto differently, or at least she would try not to. She would try forgetting that odd madness in his eyes. However, despite what she had seen today, she was sure she still wanted to be more than a friend to Naruto. '<em>My theory about childhood trauma could be true. It's nothing to worry about,'</em> she told herself.</p>
<p>She sighed again and unlocked her phone. She wanted to check if there was any news about the most recent murder case. Police had reported another dead body today in the early morning hours. Hinata heard about it from her father after arriving home from her meeting with Naruto.</p>
<p>This victim was a 25-year-old man. His body had been found on a bench in a park by a runner on their morning run. Police had to identify him via his DNA as his face wasn't recognizable due to the insane amount of stab wounds he had received after his death. Forensic examination revealed he had died from a single cut in the throat by a sharp object, most probably a broken glass piece. The glass piece hadn't been found, however.</p>
<p>Hinata saw some new information on the case. Police now speculated the man had been killed by someone close to him, probably a friend or family member because this level of mutilation signaled strong personal feelings like anger or jealousy. Worst murders were always committed by someone close to the victim. The investigators were also quite sure last week's murder and today's case weren't connected.</p>
<p>Hinata was shocked by these recent events. There hadn't been any murder cases in Konoha for years, and now there were two in such a short time. And most probably, two murderers. Her father could be right about Suna's infamous serial killer having some sick worshippers. However, other big cities like Iwa or Kumo didn't report any murder cases in these two weeks. Why did they only happen in Konoha then?</p>
<p>Hinata hoped the police would find these two lunatics soon and they would get what they deserved. She worried if there were more murders in the near future, her father wouldn't let her spend time with her friends in order to protect her.</p>
<p>She had yet to tell Hiashi about Naruto's birthday party next week. She wanted to go so much but she had a hunch her father wouldn't just happily let her go, especially after this new murder.</p>
<p>"I will figure something out," she told herself and switched the lights off in her room to sleep.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0006"><h2>6. Chapter 6</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>"No way."</p>
<p>It was Friday afternoon, Hinata and Sasuke were sitting in the car while Hinata's driver was taking them home.</p>
<p>"Please, Sasuke-kun," she begged him. "You promised you would come with me."</p>
<p>"Yes, but I don't recall saying anything about me persuading your father to let you go."</p>
<p>Hinata had gained all her courage the day before and had asked her father to let her go to Naruto's birthday party on Saturday. He had said no without even thinking about it, for two reasons: firstly, because of the murders. Secondly, it was the first time he had ever heard about this Naruto.</p>
<p>"But you're the only one who could convince him. Also, this is the first house party I have ever been invited to. If I don't go everybody will think I'm antisocial or something," Hinata pouted.</p>
<p>"You didn't care about these things before," Sasuke snorted.</p>
<p>"But now I do," Hinata looked at Sasuke, trying her best to show her puppy eyes.</p>
<p>"So, Uchiha-san, are you coming to the Hyuuga residence, or should I drop you off at the Uchiha manor?" Hidan, Hinata's driver inquired politely as they arrived at a crossroad where they had to take a left turn if they wanted to get to the Uchiha manor.</p>
<p>"Fine," he grunted. "I will go to talk to Hiashi."</p>
<p>"You are the best!" Hinata cheered.</p>
<p>After they arrived at the Hyuuga residence, Sasuke almost immediately set out to search for Hiashi. He found him quite easily and asked him if they could talk. They disappeared in Hiashi's office, and Hinata sat down on the couch in the living room, waiting anxiously for the outcome. She was certain Sasuke could convince her father if he really wanted to, but she wasn't sure about his determination.</p>
<p>She fidgeted with her fingers while thinking about all the possible scenarios that could potentially happen at the party. Also, she had already bought a beautiful lavender dress and she would be extremely sorry if she couldn't show it to Naruto.</p>
<p>"Is he asking for your hand in marriage or what?" Hanabi giggled while she was laying on the floor of the living room, playing with some shooting game on her PS5.</p>
<p>"Shut up," Hinata moaned. "Please," she added so she wouldn't sound too rude.</p>
<p>"Always so polite," Hanabi laughed at her sister but kept focusing on her game.</p>
<p>Hinata instantly jumped to her feet when she noticed Sasuke exiting her father's office and closing the door behind himself. She put her hands together as if she was praying and stood there like a statue, nervously waiting for the answer. Sasuke walked up to her and Hinata looked eagerly into his eyes.</p>
<p>"We're fine," he said with a small smile and poked her forehead with two fingers. Hinata hissed faintly to show him his poke hurt a bit and put her hand to the spot to emphasize it even more, but smiled back at him gratefully at the same time.</p>
<p>"Congratulations!" Hanabi chirped. Sasuke looked at her, puzzled. "You know, for your engagement," she chuckled.</p>
<p>"What is she talking about?" Sasuke squinted his eyes at Hanabi.</p>
<p>"Nothing, nothing," Hinata sweatdropped and waved with her hands in front of her body awkwardly. "So, I can go, right?"</p>
<p>"Yes. I'm going to pick you up at 9 and I will also take you home whenever it's finished. And you must stick with me."</p>
<p>"Understood. Thank you," Hinata hugged him tightly. "See you tomorrow then?"</p>
<p>"Yeah," Sasuke nodded.</p>
<p>Hinata went to find Hidan and asked him to take Sasuke home. She waved him goodbye and ran upstairs to her room. She jumped in her bed and screamed excitedly into her pillow. She was overjoyed. She hoped she could talk to Naruto at the party.</p>
<p>At first, it was rather awkward seeing Naruto in school after their weird last meeting, but things slowly settled between them. By the end of the week, Hinata almost even forgot how odd Naruto had been behaving last Saturday.</p>
<p>During this week they talked more than they usually did. Sasuke still didn't let her eat lunch with their usual group, but he didn't say anything when Hinata talked to Naruto between classes. She could always feel Sasuke's eyes on her, but at least he didn't force her to ignore Naruto.</p>
<p>She also got more confident around the blond boy. The more she talked to him the less she stuttered. She was happy, she felt like their friendship got stronger. She still sometimes pondered his reaction upon seeing her blood that day, but she was content with her theory about it only being some childhood trauma. She didn't want to ask him directly about it though, mainly because she felt it was too personal, but also because she didn't want to bring up the topic again.</p>
<p>She felt in her bones that this party would be unforgettable.</p>
<p>-x-x-x-x-</p>
<p>
  <em>FYI: My parents leave around 8 so you can come after that whenever you want. You can come earlier too of course but then you'd have to chit-chat with them haha. I've bought everything, so you don't have to bring anything if you don't want to. You also don't have to bring any birthday presents, but I won't turn you down if you bring something anyway haha. There's no dress code or anything like that, you can wear whatever you want. Can't wait to party with y'all!</em>
</p>
<p>Hinata checked the information Naruto had sent in the group chat one last time. He added everyone whom he had invited to his party. Hinata scrolled through the list of invitees too again. She was surprised to see how many people from their school had been invited.</p>
<p>She could see her friends in the group chat: Sakura, Ino, Kiba, and Sasuke. At first, she thought it would be just the six of them, but it seemed that Naruto had planned for a much bigger party. She saw a few people whom she also knew from school, like Shion, Shino, Shikamaru, Choji, and some random classmates. However, she didn't know most of the invitees. She recognized some of the names from school, but she didn't actually talk to any of them.</p>
<p>She swiped down to read all the names. Sai, Juugo, Hozuki Suigetsu, Uzumaki Karin. <em>'She must be some relative of his,' </em>she thought. There were more than 50 people on the list. She wondered how big Naruto's house was. Most probably not everyone he had added to the chat would come, but still, even half of these people would need a big space.</p>
<p>She locked her phone and put it in her lavender clutch bag. She was extremely excited, she feared her heart would jump out of her chest. She had never been to a house party before. Also, there would be a lot of people so it was the perfect opportunity to step out of her comfort zone a bit.</p>
<p>"Hinata-sama, Uchiha-san has arrived," she heard the voice of one of their maids from the other side of her closed door.</p>
<p>"Thank you, I will be right there," she answered.</p>
<p>She looked in the mirror in her dressing room one last time. She was wearing her new lavender dress. It was an off-shoulder dress, which ended just above her knee. She also wore black stockings and black high-heeled ankle boots. She completed her outfit with a thin black belt around her waist which highlighted her womanly figure perfectly.</p>
<p>Her hair was put in a high ponytail and the ends of her locks were curled slightly, one of her maids had helped her with it. She also wore some make-up. Nothing crazy, only a thin cat-like eyeliner and a very light pink lipstick. She had also put in small, gold hoop earrings.</p>
<p>'<em>I hope Naruto-kun will like all of this,'</em> she blushed at the thought. She looked so different from her everyday self with the hair and the make-up, but she actually enjoyed being different for once. She smiled at her reflection, then picked up a small gift box from her desk and went downstairs.</p>
<p>Sasuke was standing next to the front door, talking to her father. When he heard her coming down the stairs, he focused his gaze on her. Hinata let out a small chuckle when she saw Sasuke gasp in surprise. It was an unusual sight to see him stunned for sure.</p>
<p>Hinata noted Sasuke was dressed pretty casually. He was wearing black jeans, a simple white t-shirt with an unzipped dark blue jacket over it, and black sneakers. Maybe she overdid a bit with all the little details, but she didn't exactly know how to dress up for a house party.</p>
<p>"You're stunning, Hinata," her father complimented her when she arrived next to them.</p>
<p>"Thank you, Father," Hinata blushed at the praise.</p>
<p>"Enjoy yourselves tonight. And Sasuke," Hiashi turned to the boy. "Please take care of her."</p>
<p>"Of course, Sir," Sasuke nodded.</p>
<p>They said goodbye to Hiashi and walked out to get in Sasuke's car. Hinata searched for the address in the group chat and Sasuke set up the GPS. They were traveling in silence, although Hinata noticed Sasuke often glanced at her from the corner of his eyes.</p>
<p>"You look nice," he finally broke the silence.</p>
<p>"Thank you, you too," Hinata smiled at him gently, but they sat in silence again after the brief conversation. "I hope Naruto-kun will like my gift," she muttered and patted the gift box in her lap.</p>
<p>"I don't understand why you have to keep being friends with him. I already told you, he isn't as nice as he seems," Sasuke sounded annoyed. Hinata preferred not to answer him. "While we're at the party, please don't go anywhere where I can't see you. I promised your father I would take care of you."</p>
<p>"I know, I won't. Thank you for coming with me," she turned to him and put her hand on his arm to show him her gratitude.</p>
<p>"As if I had another choice."</p>
<p>They didn't say anything else during the ride. When they arrived at Naruto's house Sasuke searched for a parking spot on the street. It wasn't hard to find one, the street was almost empty. It looked like only a few guests had arrived by car.</p>
<p>Hinata figured the party had already started as she could hear loud music coming from the direction of the house when she got out of Sasuke's Tesla. Hinata took a deep breath. She was here, at Naruto's party, for real.</p>
<p>They walked to the front door and rang the doorbell. Hinata secretly hoped not everyone Naruto had invited would be coming because there was no way more than 50 people could be comfortable in the house. It was kind of big, but not that big, and she didn't like crowded places.</p>
<p>Sasuke moved his hand to ring the bell again when the door suddenly sprang open.</p>
<p>"Ah, lovebirds! I thought you wouldn't come!" Naruto basically jumped on them, hugging them both at the same time.</p>
<p>Hinata gasped and blushed immediately, but Sasuke pushed Naruto away violently. The blond lost his balance for a moment, but he managed to catch the doorframe, successfully avoiding falling.</p>
<p>"Don't touch me," Sasuke barked at him.</p>
<p>Naruto blinked in confusion and muttered something that sounded like an apology. Hinata sent a disapproving look in Sasuke's direction and turned back to face Naruto. The blond was clearly tipsy. Well, it wasn't too surprising anyway. He was the birthday boy so most probably everybody wanted to drink with him for his sake, Hinata figured.</p>
<p>"This is for you, Naruto-kun. Happy birthday!" Hinata bowed and gave him the gift she had brought for him. Naruto looked surprised as he took the small gift box from her hands.</p>
<p>"Thank you, Hinata-chan! What's this?" he asked and peeked into the box.</p>
<p>"It's a bracelet," Hinata murmured. Sasuke raised an eyebrow at her. That was a very expensive bracelet he saw in that box.</p>
<p>"Oh, wow, it's very cool! Thank you, Hinata-chan! I will treasure it forever, ya know!"</p>
<p>Hinata flushed in happiness. She was glad Naruto liked her gift. She had spent almost an hour in the shop before finally choosing a piece of jewelry that would fit his personality.</p>
<p>Hinata let her eyes rest on Naruto for a moment. He was wearing ankle-length orange pants and a black t-shirt with a v-neckline. She could see a necklace she had never seen on him before hanging around his neck. So, he did wear jewelry, she didn't decide on an entirely useless gift after all. Naruto's blond hair was a bit messy and his cheeks had a slight blush, most probably from the alcohol he had drunk.</p>
<p>Hinata glanced at all the shoes next to the door. She didn't count them, but it looked like there were more than 30 pairs there. A lot of people had come then.</p>
<p>"Come in and have fun," Naruto urged them inside and closed the door behind them. "You can find some snacks and a lot of things to drink in the kitchen. If you want some fresh air you can use the back door to go out for a bit. The locked rooms are locked for a reason so don't try to break the door down please," he explained with a grin before he disappeared into the living room area where most guests were.</p>
<p>Hinata took her shoes off and made a few steps toward the living room. She stopped for a moment to check out the family pictures on the wall. She thought Naruto had a nice family. She felt Sasuke stepping next to her before he said, "Let's find the others," and made his way toward the living room. Hinata followed closely behind him.</p>
<p>This part of the house was loaded with people. Hinata could also see the kitchen area from where she was standing. There were empty and half-empty bottles scattered all over the place. Hinata spotted Naruto leaning against the kitchen cupboard with a plastic cup in one hand. He was showing his new bracelet to Shion. Hinata felt an odd tightness in her chest. She didn't know they were friends.</p>
<p>She looked around searching for any other familiar face, and she soon spotted Kiba dancing with a girl she didn't recognize.</p>
<p>"Sasuke-kun, Hinata!" Sakura stepped next to them out of nowhere, holding two plastic cups in her hands. "Here, I brought you some beer."</p>
<p>"Thanks, but I'm driving," Sasuke refused in a cold tone.</p>
<p>Hinata took one of the cups from Sakura's hand and took a small sip. She didn't like beer, but she didn't want to be rude to Sakura.</p>
<p>"I can't see Ino," Hinata looked around again, but still couldn't spot her blond friend.</p>
<p>"She's outside with some guy named Sai," Sakura said as she gulped down the drink she had brought for Sasuke. "Hey, Sasuke-kun, come, dance with me," she took the boy's hand and tried to drag him to the dancefloor. The alcohol gave her a little too much courage.</p>
<p>"I would prefer not to." He pulled his hand away as if he had burnt it. Sakura couldn't hide her disappointment.</p>
<p>"Hinata, is that you? Oh my, you look beautiful." Kiba had left his dancing partner and now was hugging Hinata.</p>
<p>"Th-thanks K-Kiba-kun, b-but I c-can't b-breathe," she moaned.</p>
<p>Kiba quickly released her. He smelled strongly like beer. He took the cup filled with beer out of Hinata's hand and pulled her to the dancefloor. She wanted to tell him she didn't want to dance but they were already in the middle of the small crowd. Kiba was so enthusiastic and she didn't want to sadden him by leaving him alone, so she started moving her body to the rhythm of the music.</p>
<p>She looked for Sasuke with her eyes after dancing through a few songs. He was leaning against a wall and wouldn't take his eyes off Hinata even for a second. Sakura stood next to him with a new cup in her hand. She was trying to talk to him, but he didn't seem to react to anything the pinkette said. It was a sad sight, honestly. Sasuke was really determined not to have any fun tonight.</p>
<p>Hinata saw Ino and the guy Sakura had called Sai making their way toward her and Kiba. Ino briefly hugged Hinata and said an enthusiastic hi, then she started dancing with Sai. It wasn't the same kind of dance Hinata and Kiba did. It was more… intimate. Hinata blushed even from only watching them.</p>
<p>She tried to locate Naruto again, but he had already left the kitchen area. Hinata checked the faces around herself, but he wasn't dancing either. She figured he must be outside. She leaned forward to get closer to Kiba's ear and asked if they could go out for a minute. Kiba's eyes widened in surprise but he nodded and helped Hinata make her way toward the back door.</p>
<p>They barely stepped out of the house when Kiba grabbed her by her shoulders and turned her to face him. Hinata could see an odd sparkle in his eyes. She wanted to ask if he felt alright when he suddenly bent forward. Hinata didn't have enough time to react so she just shut her eyes closed and waited for the inevitable kiss. However, it didn't come.</p>
<p>She slowly opened her eyes and saw Sasuke holding Kiba back by his hood, almost strangling the poor boy.</p>
<p>"Excuse me, what are you doing?" he asked Kiba scornfully.</p>
<p>"N-n-no-noth-in-in-g-g." It was hard to understand Kiba as he had almost no air. Sasuke let go of him with a disapproving sigh.</p>
<p>"You're drunk, Kiba, but it's no excuse for forcing yourself on someone."</p>
<p>"S-Sorry. I thought… never mind, I'm sorry, Hinata," he bowed so deep his head almost touched the ground and quickly made his escape.</p>
<p>"Thank you, Sasuke-kun. He caught me off guard," Hinata whispered while fidgeting with her fingers. This was embarrassing.</p>
<p>"Why did you come out with him in the first place?" he raised an eyebrow at her.</p>
<p>"I… it was just too hot inside and I wanted to have some fresh air."</p>
<p>Hinata suddenly heard a bumping noise and turned her head to see where it came from. She gasped when she identified the source. It was Naruto, pushing Shion against the wooden fence at the back of the garden. He was kissing her rather passionately.</p>
<p>Hinata felt her heart sank into her stomach. Her mouth dried in an instant and she could feel her lips slightly part against her will. Sasuke traced her gaze to see what she was looking at and grunted in disgust when he recognized the two blonds battling with their tongues.</p>
<p>"Let's go back," Hinata grabbed Sasuke's hand a pulled him inside.</p>
<p>She felt tears forming in her eyes. She knew they were only friends with Naruto, but deep inside she had hoped she could change that tonight. And now, Naruto was kissing another girl instead of her. She quickly wiped her tears away, paying attention not to ruin her make-up, and made her way to the kitchen.</p>
<p>She took a plastic cup in her hand and poured herself the strongest drink she could find and gulped it down in an instant. She was about to fill the cup once more when Sasuke took the bottle out of her hand.</p>
<p>"You're going to get drunk," he said as he passed the bottle to a random guy who was searching for something to drink. "You know it's for the best, he is –"</p>
<p>"I'm not in the mood for that now, Sasuke," she interrupted him rather aggressively. Sasuke leaned against the cupboard and crossed his arms in front of his chest. They were just staring at each other for long minutes.</p>
<p>Hinata felt the mixture of alcohol and the image in her head of Naruto kissing Shion making her sick. She suddenly spun around and went to find the bathroom, but it was occupied. She felt like she would throw up, so she decided to check upstairs if there was another bathroom. She ran up the stairs and quickly found a bathroom door. It was unlocked so she went in.</p>
<p>She locked it from the inside and grabbed the sink to support herself. She stared at her reflection in the mirror. She had tried everything, had made her hair nicely, had put on make-up, but it still wasn't enough for Naruto to notice her. He didn't even seem to particularly like her dress. <em>'Maybe I should give myself a bloody wound, he would surely notice me then.'</em> She cringed at her own thoughts.</p>
<p>She felt dizzy. Maybe it wasn't the best idea to drown her sadness in alcohol. She let out a painful moan. She wanted to go home.</p>
<p>"Hinata, are you okay in there?" she heard Sasuke's voice from the other side of the door.</p>
<p>Sasuke. The only one who always stood by her side. Always. Even now.</p>
<p>She unlocked the door and let him in. He seemed surprised that Hinata opened the door without any begging but stepped in without saying anything anyway. His heart skipped a beat when he felt Hinata's lips brushing against his. He opened his lips unconsciously and immediately felt Hinata's tongue entering and exploring the inside of his mouth.</p>
<p>His body reacted against his will. He pulled Hinata's petite body closer, hugging her tightly and deepening their kiss. He knew he should stop. It wasn't like he didn't want this. In fact, he had wanted it for such a long time, but not like this. Not with Hinata being drunk.</p>
<p>Sasuke was about to push her away gently when he felt Hinata's small hand finding its way under his t-shirt, exploring his body. He tensed immediately and grabbed her hand to stop her, but it was too late.</p>
<p>"What's this?" Hinata's lavender eyes widened in shock.</p>
<p>Before Sasuke could stop her, she lifted his t-shirt and gasped. Hinata's slightly swollen lips were parted in disbelief as she stared at Sasuke's upper body. It was covered with stab wounds.</p>
<p>"It was you."</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Were you surprised?! Guess not, I went a little too heavy on foreshadowing, sorry about that. I’m a little anxious about what you all think about this chapter, but well, I just hope you don’t hate me. I promise we’re heading toward NaruHina, even if it doesn’t look like that right now.</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0007"><h2>7. Chapter 7</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>"It was you."</p>
<p>Sasuke spun around to face the owner of the voice and instinctively pushed Hinata behind his back. Naruto was standing in the bathroom door, leaning casually against the doorframe with one shoulder and his arms folded in front of his chest. There was something unnerving in his expression as he eyed his two dark-haired classmates.</p>
<p>"It was me," Sasuke answered harshly and put an arm in front of Hinata as if he wanted to protect her from the blond at all costs.</p>
<p>Naruto grunted and pushed himself away from the doorframe. He stepped into the bathroom and closed the door behind himself. Hinata's face blanched when she recognized the clicking sound as Naruto locked the door from the inside. Sasuke took a step back unconsciously, forcing her to do the same. She could feel the sink painfully pressing into her waist, but she didn't dare to say a word.</p>
<p>She didn't understand anything, but the sudden tension in the room held her back from asking questions. She unwittingly started biting her lower lip when she noticed how stiff Sasuke was in front of her. His whole posture showed he would be ready to fight Naruto if the blond took one more step closer.</p>
<p>Hinata cautiously peeked over Sasuke's shoulder to be able to observe Naruto's expression. The usual mischievous sparkle was gone from his gaze, and instead of the everlasting warmness in his eyes, Hinata only spotted deep pain.</p>
<p>"I get it now. I get why you hate me. I can remember you now."</p>
<p>Sasuke didn't answer. He just kept staring into the ocean blue eyes as he was trying to come up with a plan in his head to help Hinata escape in case Naruto tried to hurt the girl somehow.</p>
<p>Naruto caught a hint of fear in Hinata's eyes, so he tried to soften his expression. He didn't want to scare her.</p>
<p>"I've changed. I won't hurt any of you, don't worry," he said softly and gave them a small smile.</p>
<p>"Do you still have the nerve to say that to my face and smile? After all you've done?" Sasuke suddenly lost his usual calmness and dashed forward to grab Naruto's t-shirt. "I should fucking go to the police," he hissed.</p>
<p>"What's going on?" Hinata whispered, finally gaining enough courage to speak up. She didn't understand a thing and she desperately needed an explanation.</p>
<p>However, she was left with no answer as Sasuke punched Naruto in the face. Hinata screamed as the blond boy lost his balance from both the force and the unexpectedness of the blow and fell to the ground.</p>
<p>"Sasuke!" she rushed next to Naruto intending to help him stand up, but Sasuke grabbed her by the wrist before her hands could reach him. It hurt as he forcefully pulled her back.</p>
<p>"Do you see this, Hinata?" Sasuke let go of her wrist and lifted his t-shirt to show the stab wounds to Hinata again. "He did this."</p>
<p>"What?" Hinata gasped and covered her mouth with her hand. All of a sudden, she felt the room spinning around her.</p>
<p>"He fucking stabbed me with a kitchen knife 5 times in this very house when we were children. He's fucking insane," Sasuke howled.</p>
<p>"Is it true?" Hinata heard her own voice from a distance. She felt like she was outside of her body and was only spectating the scene unfolding in the small bathroom rather than participating in it. "Please say it's not true, Naruto-kun," she begged him with tears in her eyes.</p>
<p>The blond slowly stood up, supporting himself by leaning against the wall behind him. Sasuke had hit him with all his might, and Naruto couldn't feel his face now. He saw in the mirror behind Hinata that his lips had split from Sasuke's punch and he also noticed his nose bleeding a little. It wasn't broken though, he was lucky.</p>
<p>He quickly wiped away the blood from his face and licked his bloody lip clean. He needed to turn his gaze away from his reflection in the mirror, or he would go crazy from seeing the red liquid.</p>
<p>"It's true," he groaned, unable to deny the truth.</p>
<p>Hinata felt sick. She realized her legs were shaking, and she knew they wouldn't support her for long. Her heart was pounding in her chest, the room was spinning around her, and she felt nauseous. She couldn't breathe normally anymore and saw black spots almost everywhere.</p>
<p>She felt entirely disconnected from her own body.</p>
<p>She suddenly became aware of hands slipping under her armpits. She tilted her head back a bit to see whose hands they were, and she recognized Sasuke. She figured she had collapsed, and he had caught her.</p>
<p>Hinata felt her legs leaving the ground as Sasuke took her into his arms. She heard the clicking noise again when Naruto unlocked the bathroom door. She was listening to their voices but couldn't understand the meaning behind their words anymore. It sounded like she was underwater, and they were somewhere far, far away.</p>
<p>"Can I put her there?"</p>
<p>"Yeah."</p>
<p>Hinata felt her body landing on something very soft. Was it… a bed? She believed her eyes were still open, but she couldn't see anything. She tried blinking a few times to gain back her vision, but it didn't help. She suddenly realized that a pair of blue and a pair of black eyes were above her head, inspecting her. She flinched slightly as a hand was gently put on her forehead.</p>
<p>"Stay with us, Hinata-chan, don't close your eyes," she heard a voice. She loved this voice.</p>
<p>She lifted her right hand to touch the face of the blue-eyed boy, but he pulled his head away and disappeared from her sight. Where did he go? She couldn't tell, but the other boy was still there with her. She felt air being blown rhythmically in her face. Was he… fanning her face with his hands?</p>
<p>The blond boy came back. There was something in his hand, but she couldn't tell what it was exactly as she felt her consciousness slowly fading away.</p>
<p>"Oi, don't close your eyes!"</p>
<p>She mentally sighed. These boys didn't understand what she was feeling. The sweet nothingness was calling for her and she happily gave in.</p>
<p>-x-x-x-x-</p>
<p>At first, Hinata only heard distorted voices when she felt her consciousness lazily flowing back to her mind. She wanted to open her eyes to show the owners of the voices that she was awake, but her eyes didn't react to her intention. She then tried to command other parts of her body to move, but none of them obeyed.</p>
<p>She surrendered and was just listening to the voices speaking above her head for a while. She recognized the voice she loved among them, which urged her to give a sign that she was feeling better now.</p>
<p>She managed to blink twice. Her vision was still a bit blurry, but she could see the outlines of someone with blue eyes and blond hair leaning close to her.</p>
<p>"Naruto-kun?" she breathed out. It was hard to talk, her mouth was extremely dry.</p>
<p>"Close enough," the face above her smiled as it leaned back. It wasn't the voice she loved but it was also a pleasant one to listen to. "She's awake. Kushina will stay with her until she feels strong enough to go home. Until then, you two are coming with me."</p>
<p>Hinata felt the bed move a little as the man stood up and his weight left the mattress. She watched him leaving the room with two boys following him. Where was she? Who were these people? Her body was now awake, but she couldn't say the same about her mind. She turned her head to look at the red-haired woman standing next to her.</p>
<p>"You don't have to worry, Hinata-chan. Everything will be fine," she smiled at her reassuringly as she sat down on the bed.</p>
<p>-x-x-x-x-</p>
<p>Naruto plopped himself down in a chair in his father's office. He massaged his head which was pounding from all the alcohol he had drunk tonight. This was definitely not how he had planned for this party to go.</p>
<p>Everything was fine at first, a lot of people came, they all had fun. He remembered hooking up with one of his schoolmates. He was already sobering up and honestly, he kind of regretted doing that. Until that particular event, the night was a real blast, but everything just seemed to go downhill from there.</p>
<p>When he went back to the house to join the party again, he bumped into his annoying distant cousin, Karin and her even more annoying boyfriend, Suigetsu. They started teasing Naruto about being a heartbreaker. It took serious self-discipline not to let Kurama take over his mind and kill them right then and there in front of everyone. Naruto even wondered why he had invited them in the first place.</p>
<p>Karin told him with a giggle that she had seen him with Shion, and Suigetsu explained he had spotted a very, <em>very</em> heartbroken girl in a lavender-colored dress when he had gone to the kitchen to drink something. Karin and Suigetsu had put one and one together and figured the girl would be open for switching places with Shion anytime.</p>
<p>Naruto just rolled his eyes hearing this nonsense but went to find Hinata anyway. He couldn't find her anywhere even after long minutes of searching, he even thought she had gone home already. He decided to check upstairs too, just in case.</p>
<p>He didn't even reach the top of the stairs when he noticed her kissing Sasuke passionately in the bathroom as they hadn't closed the door. He couldn't explain the exact reason, but he felt a little jealousy rising inside him while watching them.</p>
<p>Kurama advised to get rid of Sasuke right then and there but Naruto made it clear to him that he wouldn't hurt his friends. Or the boyfriend of his friend, as he didn't exactly consider Sasuke a friend.</p>
<p>And it happened then. Naruto saw Hinata lifting Sasuke's t-shirt and the stab wounds on his body captured his attention. It clicked almost immediately, all the odd feelings about him knowing the raven-haired boy from somewhere. Sasuke was his childhood friend. His friend whom he had tried to kill to please Kurama.</p>
<p>Kurama cheered inside Naruto's head. He excitedly announced they could finish what they had started all those years ago. And the worst? Naruto truly considered it for a moment.</p>
<p>His memories were a bit blurry after this point. He clearly remembered Sasuke's punch though. Even if he didn't, it was enough to look in a mirror, and his split lip and somewhat swelled nose would immediately bring his memories back.</p>
<p>He could also firmly recall fighting Kurama constantly in his head. That bastard truly desired to kill, or at least hurt Sasuke, but Naruto was strong-willed enough this time to ignore his other personality's tempting.</p>
<p>Another thing he had a vivid memory about was Hinata collapsing. He remembered unlocking the closest room to the bathroom to lay Hinata down there. It was the spare bedroom they never used. He also remembered Sasuke shouting at him to do something. Naruto called his parents and asked them to come home immediately because he didn't know what else to do. They came fairly fast and sent everyone home.</p>
<p>And now he was here in his father's office at 2 AM, with his childhood buddy, Sasuke. Who, of course, wasn't too happy to be reunited with Naruto, and as Naruto watched his father's face, he wasn't happy either.</p>
<p>"What happened to your face, Naruto?" was the first thing Minato asked. He was sitting at his desk with his chin propped on his hands and his eyes squinted at his son's visibly injured face.</p>
<p>Naruto glanced at Sasuke with a smirk before saying, "Sasuke gave me a birthday present."</p>
<p>Sasuke stiffened in his seat. He wanted to punch Naruto again, but he held himself back. He had to avoid getting into more trouble if he wanted to get away from this house once and for all.</p>
<p>"I see. Could any of you explain what happened exactly? I'm not sure I understood Naruto well enough on the phone."</p>
<p>"Well," Naruto cleared his throat. "I invited Hinata-chan and her boyfriend to the party, she's the girl upstairs. The boyfriend happens to be Sasuke. Who happens to be my friend who… you know. But I didn't know that! But then I saw his wounds and… well… things escalated quickly."</p>
<p>Naruto was rubbing the back of his neck to hide how uncomfortable he was, but in fact, he just gave it away with that subconscious movement. Sasuke was undoubtedly upset with the situation too, as he was holding onto the armrest of his chair so hard his knuckles turned white.</p>
<p>Minato pinched the bridge of his nose in distress. He couldn't believe this unlucky turn of events. He had promised Sasuke's parents that Naruto wouldn't go near their son ever again, and yet, he was here, sitting right next to him.</p>
<p>"We are classmates," Sasuke noted and Minato's eyes widened in shock. "I didn't tell about it to my parents. Don't worry," Sasuke added, seeing the older blond's slightly fearful expression.</p>
<p>Minato wanted to punch himself for his stupid mistake. He hadn't checked the list of students before picking a suitable high school for Naruto in Konoha. An amateur mistake, the exact kind that he wasn't used to making. If Sasuke's parents heard a word about this, they would go to the police without a doubt.</p>
<p>"So, why didn't you?" Minato looked at Sasuke with question in his eyes. He would understand if the boy felt threatened by Naruto's presence.</p>
<p>"Sir, with respect, I know you saved my life. I could easily be dead if you weren't there that day, but I just don't want to do anything with you or your family anymore. I can tolerate Naruto being my classmate as long as he keeps his distance from me or Hinata. That's all I want."</p>
<p>Minato nodded. Understandable. He was kind of grateful for the young boy for how he handled this unfortunate situation.</p>
<p>"He will do just that," Minato held up his hand to stop Naruto from answering as he could see his son was about to disagree. "And you don't have to worry about something like… that happening again. He's on medication and goes to therapy regularly."</p>
<p>Naruto drew in a sharp breath in surprise. His father had never used the word therapy before in front of him.</p>
<p>"As I said, I don't care. I just want him to leave us alone," Sasuke stood up from his seat. "I'm going to check up on Hinata and we're going home," he stated and walked out the room without saying goodbye.</p>
<p>"Dad, I –"</p>
<p>"Why didn't you tell me about Sasuke before?" Minato sounded terrifyingly serious.</p>
<p>"I told you, I didn't know it was him. I didn't recognize him," Naruto looked at the ground. He didn't want to see that expression on his father's face.</p>
<p>Minato sighed. Maybe it wasn't a good idea to bring Naruto back to Konoha. However, he was here now anyway, so Minato had to manage this situation the best he could.</p>
<p>"You know, I had an arrangement with Sasuke's parents in order to protect you from possibly going to juvenile prison. I vowed to them that they would never see you again and you would never go near their son, ever again. They also know about your condition. It was hard to convince them even with that reasoning, but I did everything I could to protect you. You might have figured already, but this is why you had to move to Suna with your mother so suddenly. You should be grateful to Sasuke for not telling about you to his parents."</p>
<p>Naruto's eyes twitched. He suspected the whole moving-to-Suna thing had something to do with the events of his 10th birthday party, but it was different only suspecting and knowing it for sure. He felt his heart ache. He caused so much suffering for his parents.</p>
<p>"I want you to respect Sasuke's wishes and keep your distance from both him and the girl."</p>
<p>"But Dad –" Naruto jumped up from his seat, trying to object.</p>
<p>"No buts, Naruto," Minato's voice was stern. "Please try to understand the situation you're in."</p>
<p>Naruto felt like someone poured ice-cold water on him. He understood the reason behind keeping his distance from Sasuke. In fact, he would do that even without his father asking him, but he didn't want to cut ties with Hinata. They grew to be quite close friends. Also, deep down he wished she would stop whatever she had going on with Sasuke and maybe… try something with him instead. But he wouldn't say that out loud for sure.</p>
<p>Naruto had noticed how beautiful Hinata was today. The dress she wore looked perfect on her figure, and her hair… He noticed the make-up also, but he didn't care much about that. She was beautiful even without all that. He hated to admit it, but he was thinking about Hinata even while kissing Shion.</p>
<p>He clenched his fists and nodded. He ignored Kurama screaming in his head.</p>
<p>-x-x-x-x-</p>
<p>Hinata thanked Naruto's mom for everything and apologized for the trouble. Kushina just laughed and waved them goodbye. Hinata bowed deeply and got in Sasuke's car so he could take her home as he had promised to her father.</p>
<p>"Do you understand now?" he asked suddenly after a long silence.</p>
<p>Hinata glanced at him. She still felt a bit dizzy, but she was aware that all that had happened tonight weren't just some drunken dream, unfortunately.</p>
<p>"I do," she whispered.</p>
<p>She really did and felt her heart ache for Sasuke. However, at the same time, she felt her heart ache for Naruto, too. Kushina had briefly told Hinata about Naruto's condition and she had explained that he was taking meds and attending therapy. She had also asked Hinata not to tell anyone about this so Naruto could live a normal life. She had agreed.</p>
<p>Hinata wondered if she was a bad person for not taking Sasuke's side in the matter unequivocally. She just couldn't see Naruto as someone evil in this story. He had a mental illness, but he was working on suppressing his other personality. He just needed friends and an opportunity to live a normal life, and she knew she wanted to stand beside him to help him.</p>
<p>They didn't say any other word during the car ride home. Hinata was thankful that Sasuke didn't bring up their kiss because she wasn't ready to talk about that at all.</p>
<p>When they arrived at the Hyuuga residence, Hinata swiftly thanked Sasuke for taking her home before getting out of the car and said a quick goodbye. Sasuke gestured her to go inside, and she did just that. She only heard Sasuke speeding off when she was already inside the house.</p>
<p>It was silent, but it was natural as it was almost 3 AM. She tiptoed to her room and took a long shower in her bathroom. She cleaned her face and undid her hair, then changed to her pajamas and climbed into her bed.</p>
<p>She tried to sleep but she couldn't. There was just too much on her mind and she didn't want to be alone. She sighed and climbed out of her bed. She made her way toward Hanabi's room. She was standing in front of the door uncertainly for a while, but she eventually decided to go in.</p>
<p>Hanabi immediately woke up as she heard the cracks of her door while it was being opened. She sleepily looked at the dark figure in her room.</p>
<p>"Onee-chan, is that you? What are you doing here? Is everything okay? What time is it?"</p>
<p>Hinata didn't answer, just closed the door behind herself and climbed into her sister's bed. She slipped close to her and hugged Hanabi tightly.</p>
<p>"Can I stay here for a bit?" she whispered into her hair.</p>
<p>Hanabi was stunned but nodded anyway. She sensed something had happened at the party, but she didn't want to ask. She would talk to her older sister in the morning.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>This chapter was so much harder to write than I initially thought. I literally wrote this two times because I didn't like the first version, lol. Thank you for all the comments for every one of you, it's always so good to see your reactions, so thanks a lot!</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0008"><h2>8. Chapter 8</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Hinata was awakened by the sun shining brightly into her eyes. She moaned as she blinked her dreams away. She sat up in the bed hastily when she noticed the room she was in wasn't her own room. She was about to make an escape when she finally recognized this place as her sister's room. She pressed her hand against her chest and sighed in relief as she remembered coming to sleep with Hanabi last night.</p>
<p>"Good morning, Onee-chan," Hanabi turned in her seat toward Hinata with a wide smile on her face. She was sitting at her desk and was doing her homework.</p>
<p>"What time is it?" Hinata asked, covering her eyes from the way too bright beams of the sun.</p>
<p>"It's almost noon. You missed breakfast but lunch should be ready soon."</p>
<p>Hinata buried her face into her hands as memories from last night started flowing back into her mind again. She wished she could go back to sleep and never wake up again.</p>
<p>"What happened yesterday?" Hanabi inquired with her eyes sparkling with curiosity as she sat next to Hinata on the bed.</p>
<p>"It was a disaster," Hinata groaned into her hands.</p>
<p>"I figured as much, you never come to sleep with me. Just tell me already, it can't be that bad."</p>
<p>Hinata came out of hiding behind her hands but stayed silent and fixed her gaze on the blanket. Hanabi knitted her eyebrows and impatiently gestured her to start talking.</p>
<p>"Everything was fine at first. Naruto-kun liked my gift and I danced with Kiba-kun, but he tried to kiss me, which was so awkward. After that, I saw Naruto-kun kissing a girl and I got so jealous I got kind of drunk. I don't even drink… Then I did the stupidest thing ever and kissed Sasuke-kun. But the worst was that I passed out and Naruto-kun's parents had to cancel the party because of me. At least I got to bond with his mom a bit, but still, I'm so embarrassed…"</p>
<p>Hinata purposefully didn't mention anything about the stab wounds on Sasuke's upper body and all the information she now knew about him and Naruto. She had promised to Kushina that she wouldn't tell it to anyone, not even her sister with whom she would normally share every single detail.</p>
<p>"Wait, what?" Hanabi's eyes widened in shock. "Are you for real?"</p>
<p>"Unfortunately…"</p>
<p>"I can't believe you actually kissed Sasuke. I'm happy for you but wow, I thought you don't like him like that," she giggled.</p>
<p>"I don't, that's the problem," Hinata sighed. "He's handsome and all, but he's my best friend. I don't think I want him to be anything more. I just couldn't think straight after seeing Naruto-kun and –"</p>
<p>"Wait, wait, so are you saying you like this Naruto guy instead of Sasuke?"</p>
<p>Hanabi never understood why her sister didn't fancy the raven-haired boy. It was painfully obvious he liked her and would be open to moving their relationship forward. In Hanabi's opinion, they would make a good couple, but it seemed like her older sister had yet to realize that.</p>
<p>"Well…" Hinata blushed and started fidgeting with her fingers. "I might…"</p>
<p>"I want to see him. Do you have a picture?" Hanabi asked enthusiastically. She was dying to see the boy that could steal Hinata's heart.</p>
<p>"I can show you his social media account." Hinata had placed her phone on the nightstand last night, so she just grabbed it and started typing his name. Suddenly, she felt like someone had punched all the air out of her lungs. "He blocked me."</p>
<p>Hanabi spotted the hurt in her older sister's eyes. She wanted to comfort her, but she didn't know Naruto and she didn't want to give any false hope to Hinata. So, she decided not to say anything.</p>
<p>Hinata tried to search for Naruto's profile a few more times but it didn't make any difference, she still couldn't find anything. She opened their messages. She could see his profile picture and their previous conversations but couldn't message him anymore. No doubt, he had blocked her.</p>
<p>But why? Was he pissed because he had to call his parents to end the party early because of her? Or was this about him being uncomfortable for what had happened between the three of them? Hinata wasn't sure which scenario was more plausible, but she was certain of one thing. She would need to talk to him about it in school.</p>
<p>"There was another murder last night. I saw it on the news today morning," Hanabi noted, trying to avert Hinata's mind from the boy. Maybe it wasn't the most pleasant topic to talk about, but it was the first thing that came to her mind.</p>
<p>"What? Where?" Hinata snapped her head up in shock and stared at Hanabi with slightly parted lips.</p>
<p>"On Tobirama Square. 21-year-old female, in the same condition as the last corpse. Police are now investigating if the two were related somehow," Hanabi explained briefly.</p>
<p>Hinata gasped. Tobirama Square was awfully close to Naruto's house. She immediately checked her social media feed for more information on the case. She quickly read through some articles about it, but they all said the same as Hanabi, nothing more.</p>
<p>She couldn't believe all this was happening in Konoha. It had been such a peaceful town and yet it was now the third dead body in three weeks. She started shaking, realizing it easily could have been her as she was so close to the location. She was grateful to Sasuke for taking her home by car.</p>
<p>"Father asked us to be careful and never go anywhere alone," Hanabi said as she squeezed Hinata's hand to show her clearly distressed sister some support. Hinata nodded and tried smiling at her, but she failed miserably.</p>
<p>-x-x-x-x-</p>
<p>Naruto was on his way to school on Monday morning, riding the bus as usual. He leaned his forehead against the window and was thinking about the weekend's events.</p>
<p>Intense anger had captured him after talking to his father that night because he didn't want to stop talking to Hinata. He tried to sleep after she and Sasuke left the house, but he just couldn't. He laid in his bed wide awake for a time that seemed like an eternity, thinking about what he should do. He remembered grabbing his cellphone madly and blocking Hinata on social media without thinking it through twice. Although he immediately regretted it, he left her blocked.</p>
<p>At one point he gave up struggling with his thoughts and let Kurama take over his mind to ease his anger. He checked if his parents were asleep and sneaked out of the house. He didn't have to walk for long before he spotted his victim. It was some girl, probably on her way home from a party.</p>
<p>He didn't even remember her face. He could only recall the otherworldly relief he felt while stabbing her to death. And now, another set of bloody clothes were under his bed next to his bloody shirt. He really needed to find a safe place to throw them away before his mom would eventually find them. He would have some explaining to do otherwise.</p>
<p>Naruto got off the bus when he finally reached the stop for his school. He casually walked inside the building with his backpack hanging on his right shoulder. Only by looking at him, no one would have guessed he was spending the last twenty minutes thinking back on a murder he had committed.</p>
<p>When he finally stepped into his classroom, he instantly spotted Hinata and Sasuke sitting at their assigned places next to each other. Hinata was reading her history textbook preparing for class. Sasuke was just sitting next to her with his arms crossed in front of his chest. He looked rather bored.</p>
<p>"Good morning, Naruto," Sakura stepped next to the blond from behind and pulled him toward their desk. "I had a lot of fun at your party. It's a shame the neighbors called your parents," she complained while taking her school supplies out from her pink backpack.</p>
<p>Naruto had sent a text in the group chat on Sunday morning. He had told everyone they had to call the party off because the neighbors were complaining about the loud music. He didn't want anyone to know the exact reason behind ending the party early, and it sounded like a credible excuse.</p>
<p>"Yeah, sorry about that, should have kept the music down," Naruto answered with a faint smile as he sat down.</p>
<p>Hinata's body tensed upon hearing Naruto's voice. She acted like she was busy reading her textbook, but in fact, she paid close attention to the conversation taking place behind her.</p>
<p>"Oh, what's that?" Sakura took Naruto's hand and examined the bracelet on his wrist.</p>
<p>"It's a bracelet. Birthday gift from someone special," he answered with a genuine grin. Sasuke turned his head slightly toward their direction. He furrowed his eyebrows in frustration because he knew exactly who gave that bracelet to Naruto. And he didn't want that someone to be called special by someone like Naruto.</p>
<p>"Very cool," Sakura was admiring the thin but stylish gold bracelet with mouth agape. "It really fits you."</p>
<p>"Thanks, Sakura-chan, I like it too," he said loud enough to make sure Hinata would hear it. And she did, her face turning bright red clearly showed it.</p>
<p>Naruto pulled back his hand from Sakura's and stood up as Kakashi-sensei entered the classroom. He couldn't help but stare at Hinata's long, dark blue hair in front of him. The ends of her hair were still a bit curly and he felt an odd desire to touch them, but before he could act on his whim, Kakashi motioned the class to sit down.</p>
<p>The lesson started, but Naruto couldn't concentrate. He was looking out the window and tried to come up with a good plan on how to talk to Hinata without Sasuke noticing.</p>
<p>From the corner of his eyes, he saw Hinata lifting her hair as if she was hot, trying to feel some air on the back of her neck. However, when she dropped her indigo locks, she also dropped a crumpled paper on Naruto's desk. Naruto felt Sakura's questioning glance on himself, but he ignored it and folded out the small piece of paper.</p>
<p>
  <em>Can we talk? 1 kick: no, 2 kicks: yes</em>
</p>
<p>Naruto didn't understand this thing with the kicks at first, but he soon realized it was meant as a way of communication, so Sasuke wouldn't be aware of them talking. Naruto slid down a bit on his chair to reach the legs of Hinata's seat and gently kicked them twice. Sakura shot him a puzzled look.</p>
<p>Okay, they had agreed to talk, but how to discuss when and where? Naruto turned his gaze at Sakura, who was still staring at Naruto, trying to figure out what exactly she had just witnessed. Naruto quickly wrote down a message in his notebook and slid it to a position where Sakura could read it.</p>
<p>
  <em>Wanna talk to Hinata, but Sasuke won't let me. Help?</em>
</p>
<p>Sakura looked into Naruto's eyes, trying to figure the situation out. Would Sasuke be angry with her if she helped Naruto? Most probably. Would she have a better chance with Sasuke if Hinata started something with Naruto? Definitely. She scrawled a word in Naruto's notebook.</p>
<p>
  <em>How?</em>
</p>
<p>
  <em>Tell her to go to the science lab at lunchtime. And distract Sasuke somehow.</em>
</p>
<p>That would be complicated, Naruto knew that, but he trusted Sakura's abilities in creating a distraction. The girl must have been thinking about the same thing because she glared at Naruto with knitted eyebrows, seemingly contemplating if it was even worth the trouble.</p>
<p><em>Please? </em>Naruto added quickly and also drew a heart, hoping it would be enough to convince the girl. Sakura chuckled when she looked into his puppy eyes filled with so much desperation. She eventually nodded and turned away to focus her attention on class again. Naruto felt excitement tingling in his stomach and he genuinely wanted to hug and kiss Sakura in happiness, but they were in class, so he had to calm himself.</p>
<p>He spent the rest of the morning classes contemplating unblocking Hinata. Texting her would be so much easier.</p>
<p>-x-x-x-x-</p>
<p>Naruto was sitting on a desk in the science lab at lunchtime. He was seldom anxious, but now he felt a knot in his stomach. He wasn't sure Sakura could distract Sasuke well enough for Hinata to have time to sneak away. Sasuke was just so fucking overprotective, Naruto had never met anyone like him before. He saw the reason behind Sasuke's behavior, but still. Wasn't he overreacting a bit?</p>
<p>Naruto closed his eyes and folded his arms. He didn't know what to say to Hinata. Sorry for blocking you on social media? Sorry for making you pass out at my party? Sorry for stabbing your boyfriend 5 times when we were children? This was all so messed up.</p>
<p>'<em>Told you to kill the bastard when you still had the chance.' </em>Naruto scoffed at his thoughts.</p>
<p>Lately, Kurama really annoyed him. They had an arrangement not to hurt anyone whom they knew, but somehow, Kurama became fiercer and more reckless in the past few weeks. He wanted to kill more and more people. And the worst, he wanted to kill people Naruto knew.</p>
<p>Naruto couldn't let that happen though. Even though a murderer lived inside him, he wasn't one. However, if he let Kurama kill any of his friends he was sure he would become one. If he let Kurama kill anyone he personally knew, he would be a murderer just as much as Kurama was.</p>
<p>"Can you just leave me alone for some minutes? I don't want you to be around now," he sighed in annoyance.</p>
<p>'<em>What are you talking about? I'm always around. I'm you.'</em></p>
<p>Naruto rolled his eyes. While he had been taking his meds regularly, Kurama only spoke to him once in a blue moon, and even then he only talked about minor things. At that time Naruto kind of missed his company. However, since he stopped with the meds Kurama wouldn't let him alone. And he usually talked about nasty things. If he disappeared now, Naruto would certainly not miss him.</p>
<p>"Naruto-kun?" Hinata stepped into the lab unsurely.</p>
<p>"Hinata-chan, you came," Naruto grinned at her happily and jumped off the desk.</p>
<p>"Yes." She fixated her gaze on the ground. "But I don't think I have much time. You know Sasuke-kun… never mind. I just wanted to ask if we're still friends. I know you have blocked me." Hinata's voice was so silent Naruto almost couldn't hear her.</p>
<p>"Do you still want to be my friend?" Naruto whispered in surprise.</p>
<p>"I don't think you're a bad person, Naruto-kun. What happened with Sasuke-kun is terrible, but I think you've changed, and you –" Hinata couldn't finish, because Naruto hugged her tightly.</p>
<p>She blushed and felt butterflies all over her stomach. She took a deep breath to breathe in Naruto's scent and slowly gained enough courage to put her trembling hands around his waist. It was so peaceful, she could stand with him like this forever. Unfortunately, Naruto broke their hug eventually and stepped back to create some distance between them.</p>
<p>"What's your number?" he asked excitedly as he took his phone out of his pocket.</p>
<p>Hinata told him and she immediately felt a buzz. She pulled her phone out from her skirt's pocket with shaky hands. Naruto had sent him a message.</p>
<p>"I can't unblock you on social media for several reasons, but we can still text like this. You can also call me whenever you want," he jabbered.</p>
<p>"Okay," she nodded and saved Naruto's number. "I… I have to go back to Sasuke-kun, but… talk to you later, Naruto-kun." Hinata let the corner of her mouth curl up in a smile and made her way out of the lab.</p>
<p>After he was left alone, Naruto threw his fist into the air and let out a happy yell. "Yes!"</p>
<p>-x-x-x-x-</p>
<p>Naruto was waiting for his bus in the afternoon while texting Hinata when someone suddenly stepped next to him. He flinched as he felt a petite hand slipping on his waist.</p>
<p>"Naruto," a feminine voice whispered.</p>
<p>"Ah, Shion, what's up?" Naruto stared down at the blond girl standing too close to him for his liking. He tried to move a bit farther away from her but she clung to his waist firmly.</p>
<p>"Let's go somewhere," she murmured, looking into his eyes seductively.</p>
<p>"Eh, it would be fun, but you know, I have to go home to… umm, study."</p>
<p>Well, that was an obvious lie, but he wasn't in the mood for Shion now. After what had happened between them at his party, the girl kept texting him. They had talked even before the party a few times but in the past two days her name constantly popped up in his notifications. Naruto had already told her it was just a drunken moment for him, nothing more, but she didn't seem to get it.</p>
<p>She was beautiful, no doubt about that. However, Naruto just didn't feel a connection with her. He couldn't imagine her as his girlfriend or something like that because they couldn't really talk about anything that wouldn't bore one of them to death. Naruto was wondering why he invited her to the party in the first place. Or why he even had to hook up with her. He didn't really regret it, no, he just wished she wasn't so clingy.</p>
<p>'<em>We could get rid of her easily. Just let me do it, you won't regret it.'</em> Naruto stiffened hearing Kurama's voice. Although, he couldn't deny feeling the familiar excitement building up inside his belly. He tried his best to ignore it, but it was hard. It was getting much harder to resist Kurama's tempting lately. Maybe he should mention this to his therapist.</p>
<p>Shion slipped her small hand into Naruto's bigger one. He shuddered at the feeling and pulled his hand away. Shion's eyes showed she was deeply offended, but Naruto's bus saved him from explaining himself as it just stopped next to them.</p>
<p>"Sorry Shion, I have to go, see you later." He hopped on the bus and let out a relieved sigh.</p>
<p>He now definitely regretted everything that had happened between him and Shion. He figured the girl must have thought they would be together as a couple. However, Naruto was surely not up to that. He honestly felt ashamed of himself because he practically played with a girl's feelings. He always hated this type of guys, but it very much looked like he had just become one of them unintentionally.</p>
<p>'<em>Just kill her off already, jeez. Such drama queen you are.' </em>Naruto wished Kurama had his own body so he could finish <em>him </em>off. Well, technically, he could do that anytime, but that would mean serious self-harm.</p>
<p>During the bus ride home, he was listening to Kurama's disturbing ideas. He realized that Kurama's suggestions had become even darker since they were in Konoha, and he had also become much more violent toward Naruto himself. Naruto sometimes had a hard time defining where his own feelings and thoughts ended and where Kurama's started. His mind was a mix of a little bit of everything lately. A bit of regret, a bit of desire, a bit of innocence, a bit of bloodthirst.</p>
<p>His head was pounding from all the things going on in his head and Kurama intentionally didn't help him figure this all out. He felt alone with this whole situation even though he knew he wasn't really alone with it. Kurama was always with him.</p>
<p>He was so lost in his thought he couldn't recall when he got off the bus and walked home. One minute he was still on the bus, and the other he was standing in front of his home's door. He pushed his right hand against his temple to clear his mind and opened the door.</p>
<p>"I'm home," he yelled as he took off his shoes. Silence. Weird. His mom always welcomed him loudly.</p>
<p>He heard noises coming from the TV in the living room, so he decided to look for his parents there. Minato and Kushina were sitting on the couch, uptight and in complete silence, with their eyes glued on the screen. They didn't even say hi to their son. Honestly, it was kind of an eerie sight, seeing them like that.</p>
<p>Naruto walked next to the couch and looked at the TV. A reporter was talking about the murders in Suna. Oh yeah, the trial was today, he remembered suddenly. He put down his backpack to the ground and sat on the armrest of the couch.</p>
<p>They showed a crowd in front of the courthouse waiting for the verdict. Naruto felt nervousness forming a tight knot in his stomach. The cameras suddenly focused on the young man stepping out from the courthouse and the crowd became livid in an instant.</p>
<p>The boy's hands were in handcuffs and four policemen were trying to push a way for him among the crowd. They tried to keep people away from touching, or more likely, hitting him. Another policeman was supporting him by letting him put his weight on him. The boy's movement suggested he could faint any minute.</p>
<p>A brown cloth was placed around his head, so his facial features couldn't be seen, however, some red strains of hair still escaped the protection of the cloth. Even without seeing his face, he looked miserable. Broken, even.</p>
<p>The cameras switched back to the reporter who was now touching her ear, listening to something attentively. Most probably she was getting some information on her earpiece.</p>
<p>"Ladies and gentlemen, the trial has ended," she started with a serious tone. "Based on reliable sources, we report that Sabaku Gaara, murderer of three men and five women, is the first person in 48 years to receive the death penalty. He is to be immediately placed on death row, awaiting his execution."</p>
<p>The cameras were now focused on his family members stepping out of the courthouse. His mother had to be supported by his father and older brother, while his sister was walking behind them, crying. And the worst part of all was hearing the crowd cheer as they learned about Gaara receiving the death penalty.</p>
<p>Naruto felt his mom squeezing his hand hard. She had tears in her eyes and Naruto also felt tears running down his cheeks.</p>
<p>"I can't believe Gaara will be executed," he whispered with a trembling voice while trying to wipe his tears away.</p>
<p>"It was expected, unfortunately," Minato looked at his son, his eyes were full of sorrow. "I know he's your friend. I'm sorry this had to happen." He stood up and put his hand on Naruto's shoulder to express sympathy.</p>
<p>Naruto completely broke down from his touch. He tried to stop his tears, but he just couldn't hold them back anymore. He cried loudly, shouting in pain, his mother crying with him and his father hugging them both.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0009"><h2>9. Chapter 9</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Everyone in school noticed the sudden change in Naruto's overall mood. He became quieter and less energetic, and he often spaced out which was very unlike him. His friends had tried asking him about it, but he would simply ignore their questions. Hinata noticed it, too. They couldn't talk in person because Sasuke made that impossible by pretty much guarding Hinata in school, but she could feel the drastic change in Naruto even through his texts and their occasional phone calls. It took the blond boy more time to answer, if at all.</p>
<p>Hinata was worried about him, but she couldn't just walk up to him and ask him about what happened. At least she couldn't do that in school as Sasuke was always watching her from the corner of his eyes. To tell the truth, it was getting more irritating day by day. She felt like she had no privacy.</p>
<p>After Naruto's party things had gotten a bit uncomfortable between her and Sasuke. Neither of them brought up the kiss ever since. Hinata knew she should at least apologize, but she had a hunch that an apology wasn't what Sasuke was waiting for.</p>
<p>She had talked about this with Hanabi, and her sister told her it was obvious that Sasuke didn't mind the kiss. In fact, Hanabi was sure he would probably not reject another one or possibly even more for that matter. It was the first time Hanabi ever talked seriously about Sasuke with her sister. She always just teased her before, but when Hinata mentioned this to her little sister, she just shrugged and said she figured Hinata would get the hint eventually. Well, she didn't.</p>
<p>Hinata was sitting in science class now, but she couldn't concentrate on anything the teacher said for the first time in her whole life. She was dwelling on her relationship with Sasuke and all the small signs she had overlooked up until now, and everything just started making so much sense. Sasuke being jealous of Itachi in the past. Sasuke being too protective of her, especially around other boys. Sasuke not being bothered by others calling them lovers. Sasuke returning her kiss so eagerly that night.</p>
<p>'<em>Oh my God, Sasuke-kun likes me.'</em></p>
<p>Now she felt even more miserable than before. She realized she had let Sasuke think there could be more between them than being just friends. That kiss was the biggest mistake of her entire life. What should she do now? Whatever she would do, it would end in Sasuke's feelings being hurt.</p>
<p>The bell rang, signaling the end of today's classes. Every student hopped to their feet simultaneously and started collecting their school supplies from their desks, their minds already focused on anything else but school. Hinata, on the other hand, pushed herself into a standing position without any energy. Her realization about her best friend and his potential feelings toward her left her dizzy and weak in the legs.</p>
<p>"Are you okay? You're as pale as a ghost," Sasuke remarked.</p>
<p>"I'm fine, I just didn't eat much today," she muttered as she collected her school supplies with shaky hands.</p>
<p>Sasuke raised an eyebrow at her but didn't comment. They ate lunch together as usual, and Hinata ate quite a lot.</p>
<p>"Let's just go, Hidan-san must be already here," Hinata said, looking everywhere but at Sasuke.</p>
<p>They walked outside and got in the car already parking in front of the school building. Hinata snatched her phone out of her pocket as soon as Hidan started driving. She needed to talk about her revelation with someone. But who? She couldn't tell Sakura, she knew how much her friend loved Sasuke. Kiba? No, after he had tried to kiss her at the party, things got weird with him, too. She could tell Ino. Or not, she remembered Ino didn't really reply to their texts lately as she was too busy with her new boyfriend, Sai. Hanabi already knew about all this, and she just wouldn't understand why Hinata wasn't happy about the unexpected turn of events. She wouldn't be able to confront Sasuke as of now, so she was left with only one person.</p>
<p><em>I think Sasuke likes me. What do I do now? </em>she typed with trembling fingers. Naruto's reply came unusually fast this time.</p>
<p>
  <em>What are you talking about? Of course he likes you. He's your boyfriend.</em>
</p>
<p>Oh, yes. Hinata totally forgot about this misunderstanding. She figured she wasn't convincing enough the last time she told Naruto she and Sasuke weren't a thing. She shuddered as she remembered the blond calling them lovebirds when they arrived at his party.</p>
<p>
  <em>Why everyone keeps saying that? We aren't together, never will be. Only friends.</em>
</p>
<p>Naruto didn't reply for a few minutes which felt like hours of nerve-wracking waiting for Hinata.</p>
<p>
  <em>I saw you two kissing at the party.</em>
</p>
<p>Hinata stared at her phone with wide eyes. Did Naruto see that? She thought he was only present when she was already examining Sasuke's scars. She had to clear this mess up as soon as possible. She was about to start typing her explanation when she suddenly became aware of Sasuke's dark eyes shamelessly glaring at her. She slowly looked up from her screen and found him turned in the front seat, now facing her. How long had he been watching her?</p>
<p>"Who are you texting?" he asked with suspicion in his voice.</p>
<p>"Hanabi," she blurted out the first name that came to her mind.</p>
<p>"What does she say? You seem flustered."</p>
<p>"Umm… she got a bad grade on her last test," she mumbled and averted her gaze.</p>
<p>"You're a very bad liar you know that, right?" Sasuke smirked. "Give me your phone." He made an urging motion with his hand but when Hinata didn't move, he reached out to yank her phone out of her hand.</p>
<p>"What are you doing?" Hinata quickly shoved her phone into her skirt's pocket. "You were just joking, right? You can't just take my phone and check what I'm doing. You are not my father." She was aware of how angry her voice sounded, and she really tried to hide her fury but she clearly failed.</p>
<p>Sasuke was staring at her completely emotionless. Hinata forced herself to look into those dark eyes, and as soon as her lavender gaze met his black orbs she knew he was serious. He did intend to check her phone. She took a few deep breaths to calm herself, but she was livid. It was generally hard to upset her, she didn't even remember the last time it happened, but now Sasuke crossed the line.</p>
<p>"It's Uzumaki, right? The one you are texting."</p>
<p>"It's none of your business, honestly." She wanted to bite her tongue because she was becoming rude, but the words just slipped out her mouth.</p>
<p>"It is, actually," Sasuke snapped at her, although he didn't shout, he never did, his voice just became stern. "Don't you still get it? I thought you were smarter than this. He could be on medication, but he's still batshit crazy. He could lose it any minute. I just want to protect you and -"</p>
<p>"You're just jealous because I love him instead of you," Hinata screamed at him.</p>
<p>The air completely froze, and even Hidan wished he wasn't there right now. Hinata clapped her hand over her mouth, disgusted by her own hurtful words. She didn't mean to say that, she wanted to revert back time and swallow her words, but they were already out. Sasuke's eyes twitched a little but other than that he managed to keep his face blank. He gawked at her for the longest time before he finally turned his gaze away.</p>
<p>"S-Sasuke-kun I… I d-didn't… I didn't m-mean it like t-that," she stuttered ruefully.</p>
<p>"Yeah, you did. Never mind, do whatever you want," Sasuke grunted and turned to Hidan. "Hidan, could you stop the car right now? I can walk home from here." Hidan nodded and pulled over.</p>
<p>"Wait, Sasuke-kun…" Hinata tried to grab his hand to hold him back but he was too fast. He jumped out of the car and slammed the door, leaving Hinata there completely dumbfounded.</p>
<p>"Hinata-sama?" she heard Hidan's uncertain voice after a pregnant silence.</p>
<p>"Hidan-san, could you please take me to this address?"</p>
<p>-x-x-x-x-</p>
<p>Naruto was laying on the couch in the living room and fixed his gaze on the ceiling. He had already changed out of his school uniform and wore his usual home outfit which was a simple white t-shirt and orange joggers. He heard his mother singing while cooking dinner in the kitchen. His father wasn't home. Hinata didn't answer him.</p>
<p>He didn't understand the girl. He didn't understand her at all. What was this Sasuke-liking-her thing about? Sure, she had said they weren't together but after he saw them kiss, he knew it was a lie. Or maybe, it wasn't a complete lie, but some half-truth.</p>
<p>He didn't understand himself, either. Why did he care about Hinata and Sasuke? He spent the past few days mulling over his feelings toward her, but he came to the conclusion that it wasn't anything romantic. It was only a love that you feel for your friends. Or was it something more? He truly couldn't decide and it drove him crazy.</p>
<p>He suddenly found himself pondering on his friend, Gaara. His friend, on death row. He still couldn't wrap his mind around this fact. Since he had heard the news, he felt like he was an entirely different person. He had even admitted his connection to Gaara to his therapist, Dr. Tsunade. Naruto had promised himself before moving to Konoha that he wouldn't tell about it to anyone, yet he figured she could help him process this whole thing.</p>
<p>And she tried, she really did, but unbeknownst to her, she had just made things worse. She had told Naruto that having a friend who turned out to be a serial killer was not a reflection of ourselves. Naruto was not Gaara. Naruto was not responsible for any horrible things Gaara had done. Naruto should not let this define him.</p>
<p>But she was so wrong and she had no idea.</p>
<p>Well, Naruto was really not Gaara. And Gaara was not Naruto, unfortunately for everyone, but mainly for Gaara. The thing is, Gaara had done nothing. It was all Naruto. Well, Kurama to be exact, but still. Police would have been closer to serve justice had they captured Naruto instead of Gaara.</p>
<p>Since Naruto had stopped taking his meds, Kurama was slowly but surely becoming louder in his head. It started when they were still living in Suna and Naruto made the mistake of letting him convince him to have some fun. In the beginning, it was all about smaller things once again just as when he was a child. Being violent at first. Killing animals later. And then, killing people.</p>
<p>He could save his friend. He could go to the police and give himself up. But then, he would be placed on death row instead of Gaara, but he was as innocent as Gaara was. The only one that should be executed was Kurama. But that, unfortunately, was impossible without Naruto being involved.</p>
<p>'<em>You should just be happy you got away with it. You should be grateful to whoever made Gaara look like the culprit. That someone most probably saved our life,'</em> Kurama noted in his head.</p>
<p>Naruto often wondered who it was and why he or she did that. Why would anyone want to save him? He sometimes wanted to believe it was just a big coincidence, but deep down he was sure it wasn't. He had read about some evidence against Gaara and they were all fucking fake but done so well that nobody noticed. Except him, of course, who himself had committed all the murders.</p>
<p>He sighed. He was disgusted by his own actions. He should have stopped after he got away with Kurama's crimes in Suna, but he couldn't. He felt the same desperation as Kurama, next to the constant piling of his bloodlust and the satisfaction after taking a life. He wasn't sure anymore if it was only Kurama who wanted all of this. Until now, Naruto believed he was a good person, but now he realized he wasn't. He was scum and nothing more for letting Gaara take the blame instead of him. He clenched his fists in frustration. He couldn't leave him suffering on death row innocently,<em> he just couldn't.</em></p>
<p>The ringing of the doorbell pulled him out of his thoughts abruptly, and he jumped to his feet to open the door. He almost fell over when he recognized who was standing in front of him.</p>
<p>"Hinata-chan, what are you doing here? You really shouldn't come here, you know." Despite his words, he quickly pulled her inside and closed the door behind her.</p>
<p>"Who is it, Naruto?" they heard Kushina's voice from the kitchen.</p>
<p>"It's Kiba," he answered his mother quickly. "We will be upstairs," he said as he grabbed Hinata's hand and pulled her toward the stairs before she could say anything.</p>
<p>When they were in his room, Naruto locked his door from the inside, so his mother wouldn't come in and learn it wasn't actually Kiba. She would be furious about Naruto lying to her, but she would be more stressed out by Hinata being here. Kushina knew about Minato forbidding Naruto from talking to the girl and she actually agreed with his decision. Which by the way was kind of infuriating for Naruto as his mother usually took his side, but not this time for some reason.</p>
<p>"Sorry for the mess." Naruto scratched the nape of his neck in embarrassment. His room still looked like someone had detonated a bomb in there, but for his excuse, he didn't expect any visitors.</p>
<p>"I-It's o-okay," Hinata blushed as she realized she was actually in Naruto's room. With Naruto. Only the two of them together.</p>
<p>"So, what are you doing here? Don't get me wrong, I'm happy to see you, but you know. You are not supposed to be here."</p>
<p>"I want to talk to you about Sasuke-kun," Hinata said surprisingly confidently.</p>
<p>Naruto swept his clothes away from his chair and signaled Hinata to sit down. He at the same time sat on his bed cross-legged and leaned against the wall behind him. Hinata couldn't stop thinking about how good he looked even in his comfy home clothes, and she felt her face burning.</p>
<p>She sighed to hush away her thoughts about Naruto's appearance and just poured her heart out to him about Sasuke. She didn't know why she came here instead of just simply going home, but she just needed to tell Naruto about all that had happened. She told him everything, about herself and Sasuke spending half of their childhood together, about how she considered him like a best friend, about how her sister always teased them, about how she realized he liked her. And of course, about regretting kissing him.</p>
<p>"So, you two aren't boyfriend and girlfriend, huh?" It was the most surprising thing for Naruto in the whole story because they always gave off the lovebirds vibe, at least in his opinion.</p>
<p>"No, only friends. Although, we had an awful fight today. I told him something terrible and I'm not sure we can stay being friends after all this," her voice trembled at the end.</p>
<p>"What did you tell him?" Naruto asked while tilting his head to the side in curiosity.</p>
<p>"Th-that's n-n-not i-important," she blushed, stuttering even more than usual.</p>
<p>"Oh, okay. Well, I may not be the best one to ask about how to deal with Sasuke, haha, if you know what I mean," Naruto laughed but Hinata stiffened. This remark wasn't exactly funny coming from Naruto and after knowing their history together. "Sorry, bad joke. Shouldn't have said that," Naruto added with a serious face after noticing Hinata being uncomfortable. "I think you should tell him about your feelings. About loving him only as a friend, I mean. It could help him move on."</p>
<p>Hinata nodded and thanked him for the advice. Technically, she had already done that, just not in the way she should have done. Hinata fixated her gaze on the floor of Naruto's room. His clothes were scattered everywhere. She had an intense desire to start fidgeting with her fingers but she refrained. She didn't want Naruto to find her weird.</p>
<p>Naruto watched the girl in front of him. He wasn't an expert in giving advice on love as he himself had never been in love before, but he tried to say something helpful to Hinata. He really wanted to be a good friend to her. Or, actually, as they sat there together in somehow comforting silence, he oddly craved to kiss her. The sensation in his stomach was similar to the one he always felt before he murdered someone. He had never experienced it without wanting to hurt the person in front of him, but now he was certain he didn't want to hurt Hinata. The tingling feeling actually scared him now because he wasn't able to grasp the meaning of it.</p>
<p>"Do you think we should still pretend we aren't friends?" she asked suddenly.</p>
<p>"The situation is more complicated than you would think, Hinata-chan." Naruto folded his arms as a shadow ran through his face. He briefly explained everything to her about the agreement between his father and Sasuke's parents. He didn't see the point in hiding the truth from her anymore. She already knew so much about him, and she didn't seem to resent him.</p>
<p>Hinata just nodded in understanding and seemed to be lost in thought for some minutes. Naruto's anxiousness was building up inside him upon waiting for her to say something. Why was he so scared of losing her?</p>
<p>She unexpectedly looked Naruto directly in the eyes and asked, "But you are fine now, right? With the medication and everything, they shouldn't worry anymore."</p>
<p>Naruto reached for a small bottle of pills on his nightstand. He shook it a bit for Hinata to hear there were only a few pills in it. Well, to tell the truth, it was in the same state for a year now, but Hinata didn't need to know that.</p>
<p>"Don't worry, I'm not crazy," he smiled faintly and hoped it would be enough evidence for her to stop looking at him with those worried eyes.</p>
<p>"I never thought that," she answered with a shy smile.</p>
<p>It was true, Hinata never really considered Naruto someone not sane. In her mind, it was just a condition that could be treated, like being diabetic or having allergies. Of course, she knew it wasn't totally the same as his condition involved a previous assault on her best friend, but still. It wasn't entirely Naruto's fault, right?</p>
<p>A memory of Naruto manifested in front of her eyes out of the blue. She could clearly see some madness in his blue eyes that day in the park. It was there, even if she tried to shrug it off. If anything, that should give a serious red flag to Hinata but she had spent days convincing herself it was nothing to worry about.</p>
<p>"I should go," Hinata stood up from the chair, slightly disturbed by her own thoughts. "Could you check if it's safe enough to sneak away now, please?" Hinata walked next to his bed and glanced at him, waiting for him to go downstairs to see what his mother was doing at the moment.</p>
<p>Naruto looked into her lavender eyes and he realized he didn't want her to go. It was so calming to be near her. Even Kurama was silent now.</p>
<p>He swiftly grabbed her by the arm and pulled her on his lap. He didn't think twice before pressing his lips against hers. She stilled for a second, but when she felt Naruto's tongue eagerly brushing her lower lip, she involuntarily granted him entrance. Naruto's tongue immediately found hers and she let herself melt into his embrace, kissing him back.</p>
<p>After the kiss ended, Hinata didn't pull away. Their foreheads were gently pressing against each other and they were panting, slightly out of breath. She felt her heart racing inside her chest, and she figured her face must be as red as a tomato. Naruto just smiled and captured her lips again with even more passion than last time.</p>
<p>"Naruto? Kiba-kun? What are you doing in there? Why did you lock the door?" they suddenly heard Kushina knocking on the door and Hinata jumped off Naruto immediately.</p>
<p>"Ah, Mom? Did we lock it? I didn't even realize," he shouted back, trying to come up with a good explanation but he couldn't think straight after kissing Hinata. And that damn tingling sensation in his stomach just got even more unbearable than it was before.</p>
<p>"Yeah, you did, but it's okay, I guess. Dinner is ready. Do you want to eat with us, Kiba-kun?" Kushina inquired from the other side of the door.</p>
<p>"Oh no no, he's going home. I will be right there in a second," Naruto answered.</p>
<p>"Oh, okay. I will be downstairs then."</p>
<p>They heard thumping noises as Kushina walked downstairs and Hinata let out the air she was holding back until now. She chuckled upon looking at Naruto's blushing cheeks. She didn't know if he was blushing from embarrassment or from the kisses they shared, but she was sure she looked just the same. Or even redder, possibly.</p>
<p>"So, how will <em>Kiba </em>leave the house without being seen?" she asked with a giggle, surprised by her own confidence.</p>
<p>"I will go downstairs first to distract Mom, then you sneak out. We should hurry, Dad should arrive home anytime now, and I'm sure we wouldn't be able to deceive him so easily," Naruto explained the plan as he climbed off the bed.</p>
<p>Hinata nodded and watched Naruto as he practically broke down the door and ran down the stairs. She heard Kushina telling him she wanted to say a proper goodbye to Kiba, but Naruto quickly said something about Kiba currently having some horrible skin condition that he wouldn't want her to see. Hinata giggled at this silly excuse and quickly left the house. She walked a few streets to get farther away from Naruto's house and called Hidan to pick her up. Her heart was still pounding hard in her chest. She was so happy.</p>
<p>-x-x-x-x-</p>
<p>The Uzumaki family were eating dinner in complete silence, which made Naruto rather uneasy. They never ate in silence, Kushina would always tell stories or just nag him or his father about something unimportant, but now her eyes were focused solely on her meal. The atmosphere made Naruto squirm in his chair with nervousness, but he didn't want to be the one to speak up first. If his mother was angry with him for something he had done, he surely didn't want to make it worse. She was scary when she was angry.</p>
<p>"So, Naruto," Kushina finally put down her chopsticks and lifted her gaze at her son. Naruto involuntarily gulped as he was being inspected by that intense glare of hers.</p>
<p>"Yes?" he finally forced himself to say something.</p>
<p>"You know we love you, don't you? We love you no matter who you are. Right, Minato?" she elbowed her husband sitting next to her.</p>
<p>"Oh, right," Minato also looked up from his meal, but he didn't exactly understand where Kushina was going with this.</p>
<p>Naruto gulped again. Oh no. His mother had found it out, he was sure of it. He already saw himself being strained down by straps in a psychiatric hospital or someplace like that. He opened his mouth to speak, to defend himself, to apologize for not taking his meds, to beg them not to go to the police, but he couldn't articulate any word.</p>
<p>"It's okay, you can tell us. We already had our suspicions, right, Minato?" she elbowed him once again, this time much harder than before, making the older blond flinch in pain felt between his ribcages. "Say something," she hissed.</p>
<p>"Kushina, I'm not –"</p>
<p>"You're the father, he must be more afraid of your reaction than he is of mine. Tell him you support him," Kushina cut him off.</p>
<p>Minato was dazed as he locked eyes with Naruto, but his son was just as clueless as he was. He decided to follow Kushina's order anyway as it was never a wise decision not to. "I support you, Naruto."</p>
<p>"There, you see? There's nothing to be afraid of, you don't have to hide it from us anymore. However, I must say I really wanted grandchildren, but adoption is still a possibility, right? And Kiba-kun is a handsome boy, I already checked him out on social media," Kushina winked at Naruto with a smirk.</p>
<p>"Wait, what?" Naruto finally found his voice again.</p>
<p>Minato darted his eyes between his wife and son in confusion for some time, but he couldn't figure out the situation. "I think I missed out on something while I was working."</p>
<p>"Naruto brought a boy home," Kushina exclaimed. "He tried to keep it in secret, but he couldn't deceive me, I'm his mother after all. Maybe if you haven't locked the door it wouldn't have been that obvious," she giggled.</p>
<p>"You should've invited him to stay for dinner," Minato smiled at Naruto, finally understanding what was this all about.</p>
<p>"I told you, he was afraid of your reaction. Maybe you should tell him the story about you and –"</p>
<p>"Stop, I don't want to hear it," Naruto covered his ears with his hands while turning unhealthily flushed.</p>
<p>"Anyway, I just want to tell you to use protection even if pregnancy is impossible, because –"</p>
<p>"Mom, just stop. You completely misunderstood everything."</p>
<p>"Did I? Is he not your boyfriend then?" she tilted her head to the side, looking at Naruto in disbelief.</p>
<p>"No! I'm not into guys and Kiba just came over to… err… have some fun together." Naruto immediately wanted to slap himself for the choice of his words. He just said the worst thing possible. Why couldn't he come up with something else? Studying or anything, why having fun was the first thing that came to his mind? With that, he surely just added fuel to the fire.</p>
<p>"Oh, okay," Kushina nodded in understanding while the corners of her mouth curled up in a bright smile. "You're still experimenting then, trying out different things. It's okay, as long as you don't break anyone's heart, be it a girl or a boy. Figuring out your identity is a crucial part of growing up, you know your father –"</p>
<p>"Kushina, please, stop," Minato smiled at her awkwardly as he covered her mouth with his hand.</p>
<p>"But –" she slapped his hand away to continue, but this time she was stopped by Naruto standing up so hastily his plate on the table almost flipped over.</p>
<p>"Thank you for the food," he jabbered and made his escape. Minato and Kushina stared after him for long minutes in silence before Kushina finally spoke up.</p>
<p>"I saved a picture of Kiba-kun, do you want to see him?"</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>I hope you all liked the last scene because I really enjoyed writing it, haha. At first, I didn't want to include it, but I changed my mind because I wanted to give the Uzumakis some quality family time before shit hits the fan. Be sure, shit will hit the fan soon enough.</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0010"><h2>10. Chapter 10</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Naruto could still feel Hinata's soft mouth on his own the next day, and the buzzing sensation in his lips made it significantly harder for him to pretend that they were just two classmates, nothing more. At least she was sitting in front of him in class, so he could stare at her back and her beautiful, long, indigo-colored hair all day.</p>
<p>Today Sasuke didn't eat with Hinata. He just vanished before lunch without even saying a word to anyone, although Hinata didn't seem to mind that she had been left alone. Her carefree reaction and Sasuke's disappearance greatly confused everyone except Naruto, who knew the truth behind the raven-haired boy's strange behavior. Hinata on the other hand seemed genuinely happy to be able to eat with her friends again, even though the group wasn't complete even now.</p>
<p>After realizing Hinata would join them for lunch today, Kiba had asked Naruto if they could eat together somewhere else. Naruto reluctantly agreed, but only because Kiba started with his annoying whining, so to shut him up he had to take on the opportunity of a <em>'romantic'</em> lunch together.</p>
<p>That left Hinata sitting with only Sakura and Ino, who kept asking her the whole time about Sasuke. Ino was worried about their non-existent relationship, but Hinata took the opportunity to emphasize they were only friends. She didn't mention anything about Sasuke's other ideas regarding what other route their relationship should take though, since she respected him enough not to expose him unnecessarily.</p>
<p>She giggled mentally as she saw Sakura's face lit up with a mix of joy and relief after she realized Sasuke was actually still single. Hinata wished Sasuke saw how great of a person Sakura was, and she truly believed they would make a good couple. She made up her mind to talk to him about the pinkette once they would talk again.</p>
<p>The first time in years, they had come separately to school, Hinata with Hidan and Sasuke by his own car. On top of that, the raven-haired boy stubbornly didn't say a word to her the whole day. He sat next to her in classes as that was his assigned seat, but Hinata was sure that if he could choose, he would sit elsewhere without a second thought. To tell the truth, she didn't try to talk to him either. She knew Sasuke better than that by now, and she was aware he would just ignore her anyway.</p>
<p>After classes ended, everyone was hurrying to leave the building as soon as possible. As Naruto casually passed next to Hinata on his way out, he briefly touched the side of her hand to let her know that he was thinking about her, even though he did his best to show Sasuke otherwise.</p>
<p>Now Naruto was waiting for his bus as usual when he felt his phone buzzing in his pocket. He excitedly fished it out, expecting Hinata's name to pop up in his notifications. He stiffened upon seeing the name on the screen that definitely wasn't Hinata's.</p>
<p>
  <em>Why are you avoiding me?</em>
</p>
<p>Shion.</p>
<p><em>I'm not.</em> He quickly texted her back and sighed in frustration. Not her again. He was mentally beating himself up for not being able to stop himself at the party.</p>
<p>
  <em>Then can we meet now?</em>
</p>
<p>He read Shion's message over and over again, dwelling on what his response should be. He had time, sure, but honestly, he didn't really want to face her, not now, not later. He had hoped the girl would just get it eventually and would leave him be. He was contemplating explaining himself through text again just like he had already done a few times before when he saw a new incoming message from her.</p>
<p>
  <em>At least tell it to my face you jerk.</em>
</p>
<p>Naruto groaned. Shion was right, he acted like a complete douchebag with her. He texted back a <em>'fine'</em> and asked her where she was. As soon as she shared her exact position with him, he turned around to find her and get over with it. She wasn't that far away from him based on the location she had shared, so he imagined he would deal with this quickly and head right back home.</p>
<p>When he finally caught sight of her alleged position, a chill instantly ran down his spine. He checked again if this was the correct place, but there was no mistake. He was standing at the entrance of an eerie-looking alley with litter scattered everywhere, but his phone signaled Shion's position was only a few meters in front of him.</p>
<p>He had a bad feeling about the whole thing but decided to check what Shion was up to anyway. He walked farther into the alley, tightening his grip around the strains of his backpack. He wasn't afraid, no, this place just simply creeped him out.</p>
<p>Suddenly, he felt a burning, poking sensation in his right shoulder along with sensing something very warm leaving his body from that area. He quickly reached up for his shoulder to have an idea about what happened and spun around frantically to face his attacker. Shion was standing in front of him, staring at him with clear madness in her eyes, and holding a knife in her hand. A bloody knife.</p>
<p>Naruto snapped his head to the side to glance at his shoulder. His white shirt was soaked with his blood on the exact spot he felt that awful burning sensation radiating from.</p>
<p>"What the fuck, Shion? Did you just stab me?" he screamed at her, realizing what had just happened.</p>
<p>He witnessed her lifting the knife again to strike one more time, but he managed to grab her wrist before she could stab him again. He forcefully squeezed the weapon out of her hand, causing it to fall onto the ground with a loud clatter. Naruto tightened his grip around Shion's wrist, making her yelp in pain, and he slowly forced the girl onto the ground.</p>
<p>His stab wound was fucking hurting. It was pulsating with ache, and his vision got blurry with uncried tears of pain, caused by experiencing the constant stinging feeling in his shoulder. A thought flashed through his mind about his own victims. He didn't know getting stabbed hurt this much.</p>
<p>'<em>Let's show her how much it hurts exactly.'</em></p>
<p>Naruto couldn't think clearly from the agonizing pain in his shoulder. Shion was convulsing under his body, trying to break free from his firm hold, but she had no chance. Naruto grabbed the knife from the ground and stabbed Shion in the chest in a fragment of a second. The girl's eyes widened in comprehension before life forever faded away from her eyes.</p>
<p>Naruto froze in place. <em>'Shit.'</em></p>
<p>He was sitting on her lifeless body when he realized four things. First, he just killed someone whom he personally knew. Second, he was bleeding, and his blood was dripping on Shion's body. Third, if police checked her phone, they wouldn't even need to analyze the blood that got on her because they would immediately know Naruto was the last person to be around Shion after reading their last texts. And if that all wasn't enough, as a fourth thing, his shirt and tie were covered with Shion's blood. Thus, it was a pretty easy case identifying the murderer.</p>
<p>What about self-defense? She had actually stabbed him. Could he play it out as self-defense? Deep down, he knew it was impossible since he was physically stronger, even with a stab wound. It was obvious he wouldn't have needed to kill her to overpower her.</p>
<p>Oh, and a fifth thing. He needed medical help kind of immediately if he didn't want to bleed to death here. He was aware of his heart hammering hard against his chest as if it wanted to break free from his body. He felt the world spinning around him and he was freezing as if he was spending time in a fucking freezer. He figured he had lost a lot of blood already.</p>
<p>He tried to order his mind to think but only one word swirled in his brain back and forth.</p>
<p>'<em>Shit, shit, shit, shit…'</em></p>
<p>-x-x-x-x-</p>
<p>"Minato!" Kushina jumped from her seat to hug her husband as soon as she noticed him in the corridor of the hospital.</p>
<p>"I'm here. I came as fast as I could," he hugged her back tightly. "How is Naruto?"</p>
<p>"Still unconscious, but the doctors said he would be fine. His wound needed some stitches, but it wasn't too severe thank goodness. They said he lost quite a lot of blood, but he will be alright."</p>
<p>"And the girl?"</p>
<p>"Dead," Kushina whispered as though she didn't dare to say it out loud.</p>
<p>Minato gently pushed her away just enough to be able to look deeply into Kushina's eyes. Her violet gaze mirrored extreme distress and she looked like someone who hadn't slept for weeks. Minato broke their eye contact and looked around the corridor, spotting two police officers standing next to the door of Naruto's room.</p>
<p>"They're waiting for Naruto to wake up. To interrogate him," Kushina answered his silent question.</p>
<p>Minato furrowed his eyebrows in bitterness. His boy somehow was always in the middle of trouble. Letting out a small sigh, he decided to approach the officers to ask them some questions, hopefully, they would give him some more information.</p>
<p>"Good evening, Sir," they greeted him politely.</p>
<p>"Good evening, officers. May I ask what happened to my son? My wife wasn't in the condition to inform me in detail when she called."</p>
<p>"We don't know much either, Sir. Your son is the only one who could fill us in on the details. The only thing we know for sure is that Naruto called 911 at 5:43 PM. He informed the operator that he had a heavily bleeding stab wound in the shoulder, and he also mentioned his friend was stabbed in the chest and is not moving. By the time the ambulance arrived on the scene, he was passed out due to blood loss. We will know more after he wakes up."</p>
<p>Minato nodded, thanking the officer for the information, and strolled back to sit next to Kushina. She grabbed his hand and held it tightly as if he was the only one who could give her some comfort now.</p>
<p>It took one more hour for Naruto to wake up. When he finally did, Kushina marched into his room and embraced him in such a strong hug she almost squeezed the remnants of life out of him. The officers waited politely until Kushina checked every part of his body, searching for any undiscovered wounds. Of course, she didn't find any, but she was a mother, so she had to check.</p>
<p>Minato was sitting on the bed next to Naruto's legs and asked him questions about how he felt. He was relieved Naruto looked rather good compared to the circumstances.</p>
<p>One of the officers coughed after a few minutes to make their presence known to the family. "I'm sorry, but we have to ask Naruto some questions. Could you please wait outside? It won't take long."</p>
<p>Minato and Kushina reluctantly nodded, and after a brief encouraging squeeze on Naruto's hands, they left the room silently. The officers moved closer to Naruto's bed and one of them took a notebook out.</p>
<p>They informed him about the graveness of the situation. When they mentioned the death of Shion, Naruto seemed genuinely shocked and mournful, and the officer with the notebook took a note of his reaction.</p>
<p>"Naruto, we know it must be hard for you, but could you tell us everything you remember? If you do, you will help us find who did this to you and your friend."</p>
<p>"The whole thing is kind of blurry," Naruto started after he cleared his throat. "I met up with Shion after classes ended, but she wanted to meet in this creepy alley, you know. I asked her if she was sure it was a good idea to be there, but she said it was safe. She and I are… were friends but we weren't on good terms lately. I figured she just wanted to punch me someplace where others wouldn't see, so I stayed. I wasn't the nicest to her, you know… She was just about to shout at me when I felt someone stabbing my right shoulder from the back. I can't exactly recall how he looked, but I think he had a mask on. I was so shocked I couldn't even move but Shion tried to run away and it was when she got stabbed. I'm so ashamed of myself, I couldn't do anything to help her…" he buried his face into his hands as he finished his monologue.</p>
<p>The officer wrote down everything Naruto said. His story was corresponding with the information they had already acquired from Shion's phone. They had already known about them not being on good terms and meeting in the alley, so Naruto was not lying about this, which was good. The officer tried to detect any signs of lying in his behavior, but the blond boy seemed honest. He described the events somewhat detailed, but not too detailed. Understandable, as he most probably remembered some things but not everything. Still, they would challenge him a bit on his story.</p>
<p>"Did you see the attacker before entering the alley?"</p>
<p>"No," Naruto looked directly into the officer's eyes. "One minute we were alone, the other he was also there, stabbing us."</p>
<p>"When the ambulance found you, you were lying next to Shion. We also identified your blood on her body and your shirt also had stains of her blood on it. You said you couldn't move from shock, and she tried to run away. How is it still possible then?"</p>
<p>"After the guy had left us, I snapped out of my paralyzed state, I guess. I tried to help Shion, but she wasn't responding. That's when I called 911."</p>
<p>"Did you see the weapon the attacker used?"</p>
<p>"Briefly. It was a knife for sure."</p>
<p>"Do you know where it is now?"</p>
<p>"No," Naruto paused for a moment. "He surely pulled it out of Shion's body though."</p>
<p>"Why did he let you alive but killed Shion?" the officer eyed him suspiciously.</p>
<p>"How should I know that?" Naruto looked at the officers with question in his eyes.</p>
<p>The officer looked deeply into Naruto's blue gaze. No signs of insecurity in his voice. No significant pause before answering. No suspicious eye movement. No alarming body language. Not saying any unnecessary details. He didn't show the typical signs of lying.</p>
<p>But still, something felt off. Police couldn't find any motives behind the attack. They were speculating there was a connection between this attack and the recent murders, and the culprit might have been the same as in those cases. But why did the attacker leave the boy alive then? It didn't make any sense.</p>
<p>One possibility was that the perpetrator thought Naruto would bleed out before he could ask for help. But why did he leave it to fate? He could have just stabbed him in the chest or neck to make sure he would die on the spot.</p>
<p>The other possibility was Naruto killing Shion for some unknown reason. She tried to fight back, managed to stab him, but he still overpowered her. The officer honestly thought this was more likely than the previous theory.</p>
<p>However, there was no real evidence against the blond boy, only speculations. No eyewitnesses, not even one, and police were yet to find the murder weapon, though it was plausible that the attacker took it with himself after he fled the scene. From this point of view, the theory on a third person attacking the two teenagers was also credible.</p>
<p>'<em>He's either telling the truth or he's a really experienced liar,' </em>the officer thought and wrote down his observations. They asked a few more questions, but Naruto still didn't seem to be insincere, so the officers thanked him for his cooperation and left him alone.</p>
<p>Kushina and Minato returned to Naruto's side as soon as the officers stepped out of the room. Naruto told his parents the same thing when they asked that he had told the police a few minutes before. He could only hope they had bought his story. He did everything not to make himself suspicious, but he knew anyone's first idea would be that he was the culprit. It was kind of obvious, and it was the truth, unfortunately.</p>
<p>Honestly, he was surprised how well he handled the whole situation as he generally was a bad liar. However, before the officers marched into his hospital room, he begged Kurama to take over his mind and help him out this time. Maybe it was the first time in their entire coexistence when Naruto could take advantage of his other personality. When they switched, he just became a confident quick thinker with an expression of steel, which most probably saved his ass from inevitably going to prison.</p>
<p>Naruto glanced at his mother who was sitting on his bed. She didn't let go of his hand even for a second and she was babbling about anything that she guessed could reassure her son. She avoided the topic of the dead girl like the plague though.</p>
<p>Naruto tore his gaze away from his mother and his eyes settled on his father who was standing at the end of his bed, with arms crossed in front of his chest. He was studying Naruto's face with slightly narrowed eyes, and his lips were nothing but a straight line.</p>
<p>Naruto felt a shiver running down his spine from that expression. He had an odd impression that his father knew the truth.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0011"><h2>11. Chapter 11</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Naruto spent a few days in the hospital and the police came to talk to him a few more times. During these questionings, he figured they were trying to find evidence against him. They couldn't though. Without witnesses, it was only Naruto's word and their theories.</p>
<p>The official released statement of the police was a robbery gone wrong and the public accepted this explanation without questions. The identities of the victims were not published this time, however. Naruto had a hunch it was his father's doing since Minato most probably didn't want to make a public statement about his son being in Konoha and on top of all, being involved in the whole situation. That would easily shatter his political career.</p>
<p>However, the information spread like fire at school. A psychologist spent hours talking to Shion's classmates as it was hard for them to process the unexpected loss of their classmate.</p>
<p>Police officers were also regular guests in school in these few days. They talked to different students about Shion and Naruto, trying to make a detailed report on the relationship between those two. Shion's friends told them the girl was in love with Naruto, but he didn't return her feelings. The officers also talked to Naruto's classmates, but almost no one knew about Shion's feelings toward the blond boy. Almost.</p>
<p>"So, Uchiha-san, you are saying you saw them kiss once," the officer repeated what Sasuke had just told them.</p>
<p>"Yeah, but why is this important? Did he kill her?" Sasuke asked in a serious tone, without a hint of uncertainty in his voice. The officers noted it.</p>
<p>"Why would you think that Uchiha-san?"</p>
<p>"I'm just curious about what happened to my schoolmate," he paused for a minute, but then continued, "also, I think Naruto would be capable of killing someone," he stated with the same graveness in his words. The officers noted that too.</p>
<p>"We have a reason to think that the attacker was a third person. Naruto had also been stabbed during the attack," the officer stated.</p>
<p>"Serves him right." Sasuke's mumble was almost inaudible but the officers heard it nonetheless.</p>
<p>"Do you hold a grudge against Naruto, Uchiha-san?" one of the policemen eyed him suspiciously.</p>
<p>"Let's just say we aren't the best of friends. Can I go now?"</p>
<p>The officers nodded and let Sasuke leave the room. They might have just found something, although not something they had expected beforehand. The Uchiha boy would have enough motive to attack Naruto and it could be only a coincidence that Shion was also there. They wrote down their observations and asked for the next student.</p>
<p>"Hyuuga-san, thank you for taking your time to talk to us," one officer greeted the girl stepping into the room and signaled her to sit down. She sauntered to the chair with trembling legs and slowly sat down. "No need to be nervous, nobody is in trouble. We just want to ask some questions about Shion and Naruto to find and punish their attacker."</p>
<p>Hinata nodded at a snail's pace. She couldn't imagine how she shouldn't be nervous. She fidgeted with her fingers in her lap and couldn't look into the eyes of the two officers in front of her.</p>
<p>She was horrified when she had heard about the attack a few days prior. She despised herself for it, but at first, she had felt a bit of jealousy welling up inside her after learning Naruto had been spending time with Shion. With Shion, of all people. She remembered seeing them kiss at the party, but after the kisses she herself had shared with Naruto, Hinata simply didn't want him to be near Shion again. At that time, however, she didn't know how serious the attack truly was. She had imagined it was only a few punches or something like that.</p>
<p>She later learned the attack was much more severe than that. When she found out Naruto was stabbed and was in the hospital, she almost fainted. She tried to call him, but of course, his cellphone was turned off. Hinata had sent him a few texts just to make sure he would know she was thinking about him when he would turn on his phone again.</p>
<p>She worried herself sick because of Naruto, but almost completely forgot about Shion. And then, Hinata heard she was dead. Stabbed to death. Gone, lifeless, ceased out of existence. Dead. She had fainted after realizing the graveness of the situation.</p>
<p>"Hyuuga-san, are you friends with Uzumaki Naruto?" the voice of the police officer dragged her out of her thoughts.</p>
<p>She felt her body stiffening against her will. What should she say? Should she tell the truth? Should she lie to the police? Would doing that bring trouble to her later on?</p>
<p>"W-we are c-classmates, we o-occasionally t-talk, but we a-aren't really f-friends," she muttered. She couldn't tell the police about her and Naruto as it might cause him trouble because of his past with Sasuke.</p>
<p>"What about Shion? Did you know her?"</p>
<p>"I d-did, but w-we were o-only a-acquaintances." Hinata was so anxious she couldn't stop herself from stuttering.</p>
<p>"So, I assume you can't tell anything to us regarding the relationship between them," the officer glared at her and waited for her answer. She stayed silent, so he continued. "What about Uchiha Sasuke?"</p>
<p>"S-Sasuke-kun?" Hinata snapped her head up in surprise. "H-He is my f-friend."</p>
<p>"Do you know about any conflict between him and Naruto?"</p>
<p>Hinata felt like someone had slapped her. Questions were swirling in her mind. Did they know? Did Sasuke tell them? What should she do now? Why were they interested in this? What did it have to do with the attack on Shion and Naruto? She unconsciously chewed on her lower lip.</p>
<p>"No," she blurted out.</p>
<p>The officers noticed her odd reaction and the policeman taking notes wrote it down. He could certainly see a connection between Naruto and Sasuke, and he was confident Hyuuga Hinata also knew something.</p>
<p>"Are you sure? No one is in trouble. Uchiha-san mentioned they weren't on good terms. As his friend, you must know why that is," the officer smiled at her gently to reassure her.</p>
<p>"I… t-they are… Sasuke-kun doesn't like him, must be something from their childhood. But Sasuke-kun would never hurt Naruto-kun. Never. I know him that much," she uttered, trying to sound as confident as it was possible in her situation. She was proud she was able to suppress her stuttering at this important moment.</p>
<p>'<em>Sudden change of speech. Adding undetailed information. Jumping to sudden conclusions. Holding back information on Uchiha Sasuke.' </em>The officer wrote down his observations. He could definitely see something going on between these three.</p>
<p>"Thank you for your cooperativeness, Hyuuga-san. We don't want to bother you anymore. Could you please ask the next student to come in?"</p>
<p>Hinata nodded and basically ran out of the room. The two officers exchanged knowing glances, and the one taking notes circled Sasuke's and Hinata's names in his notebook.</p>
<p>-x-x-x-x-</p>
<p>A few days had passed since Hinata talked to the police officers. She replayed their conversation over and over in her head. Did she do it well? Or did she just bring more trouble to Naruto?</p>
<p>The blond had already been released from the hospital and he had answered all the texts she had sent. He wasn't returning to school for a few more days though. He said he needed time to rest and to process everything that had happened. Hinata understood, but she just couldn't wait to see him again. She wanted to see for herself that Naruto was really okay.</p>
<p>Sasuke was still ignoring her and she missed him dearly. They had been great friends ever since they were children, but now she felt like they were nothing more than strangers. She wanted to apologize to him for everything she had said or done. She wanted to apologize to him for not being able to reciprocate his feelings.</p>
<p>She had asked Hidan to take her to the Uchiha manor. She was feeling nervous, but she figured she couldn't put off this unpleasant conversation any longer.</p>
<p>And now, she was standing in front of the front door of the Uchihas, with her slender fingers on the bell. She hesitated. What if Sasuke sent her away? She sighed. She needed to know if their friendship was still salvageable, or she had ruined it forever.</p>
<p>She rang the bell with trembling fingers and waited anxiously. She was about to run away when the door slung open.</p>
<p>"Hinata! You haven't been around lately, I've missed you," the woman standing in the door embraced her in a tight hug.</p>
<p>"Mikoto-san," Hinata returned her hug, and the closeness of the older woman calmed her. At least Sasuke hadn't told anything to his mother about their recent fallout. The woman didn't look like she was upset with Hinata.</p>
<p>"It would be nice to chat next to a tea, but I'm guessing you aren't here for me," she smiled at her while letting her in. "Sasuke is in his room. You know your way."</p>
<p>Hinata answered with a shy smile and made her way toward the stairs. She wondered if Mikoto knew about Sasuke's feelings toward her. He liked keeping his feelings to himself but at the same time, he was very close to his mother. When he was with her, Sasuke always seemed like a completely different person. Hinata guessed if he told anyone, it would certainly be Mikoto.</p>
<p>She stopped in front of Sasuke's room, unsurely putting her weight from one leg to another. The door was closed and she couldn't hear anything from the other side. She was no longer sure she wanted to do this. She just wanted to go downstairs to Mikoto and ask for her advice. The woman was like a mother to her, and she would surely help Hinata. Also, Sasuke was her son, she would definitely know what to do.</p>
<p>She was about to spin around and head back to Mikoto when the door was suddenly opened. Sasuke was standing there, looking directly into her eyes. Hinata blushed and looked down, playing with the sides of her skirt. Coming here definitely felt like a bad idea now.</p>
<p>"Will you stand there all day?" Sasuke cocked an eyebrow at her and stepped to the side a bit, motioning Hinata to come in. She walked in without saying a word and Sasuke closed the door behind her.</p>
<p>Sasuke's room was much smaller than hers. The Uchihas had several bigger, empty rooms in the manor but Sasuke always said he liked this one. In the room, there was only a single bed with dark blue sheets, a nightstand, a desk with a chair, and a wardrobe for his clothes. He also had a small bookshelf attached to the wall next to his bed, filled with his favorite books. It was a normal room overall, just not for someone as rich as Sasuke. He didn't even have his own bathroom which was especially strange for Hinata.</p>
<p>She was unsure how to behave. Usually, she would jump into Sasuke's bed while telling some silly story about her life. Sasuke would sit next to her and would occasionally comment on what she was saying. Hinata would pick up his current read from his nightstand to check the cover, and he would tell her about the plot.</p>
<p>Hinata's gaze lingered on his nightstand. There was no book there now. She also found it quite inappropriate to lay in his bed after everything that happened between them. Out of options, she decided to sit in his chair next to the desk. Sasuke was leaning against the closed door with his hand in his pockets.</p>
<p>Neither of them said anything. Hinata felt the silence being unusually unpleasant between them.</p>
<p>"I came to apologize," she finally started, with her eyes downcast.</p>
<p>"No need." Sasuke's face and voice were completely neutral, making it impossible for Hinata to figure his feelings out.</p>
<p>"I shouldn't have said that to you. And I shouldn't have kissed you at the party. I'm really sorry. You're my best friend and I used you like that just to feel loved by someone. It was selfish and a disgusting thing to do," she paused for a moment, but Sasuke didn't answer. "I didn't know at that time, but now I understand that I played with your feelings. I'm sorry for not loving you the way you want me to. I'm not sure if our friendship can be saved after all this… but I want to try."</p>
<p>She forced herself to lift her gaze at Sasuke. He was staring back at her but he didn't say a word. Hinata squirmed uncomfortably in her seat because she didn't know what more to say. She knew this whole thing was harder for Sasuke than it was for her, but she still felt awful. She had just rejected him openly, but it was necessary because she didn't want to give Sasuke false hope anymore. He didn't deserve that at all.</p>
<p>She flinched as she stared into his eyes and spotted the odd sparkle in them. It was the love Sasuke had for her. Hinata wished he would love someone else. She wanted him to be happy, but she couldn't give him the happiness he desired.</p>
<p>"This is my luck," he said suddenly. "I could get any girl, but not the one I truly want."</p>
<p>Hinata's heart was convulsing in pain upon hearing his statement. She was ashamed for hurting Sasuke, but at the same time, she knew it wasn't her fault. If she could control her feelings, she would make herself love Sasuke. She knew she would do that to make him happy. He was important to her, but she couldn't help it. It wasn't Sasuke who gave her butterflies.</p>
<p>"I'm sure Sakura would –"</p>
<p>"I don't want to talk about this anymore," he cut her off and she blushed in embarrassment. "I want you to know one thing though. I can't let you be with Naruto. I'm saying this as your friend," he emphasized the last word.</p>
<p>Hinata frowned. Even when she came to talk about the two of them, Sasuke found a way to talk about Naruto. She understood his frustrations about the blond boy, she really did, but she still thought he was overreacting.</p>
<p>"I know I can't relate to your situation, but –"</p>
<p>"You know he's the one who killed Shion, right?" Sasuke cut her off again, narrowing his eyes at her. Hinata was taken aback by his statement. "You can't possibly believe he just happened to be there. He, of all people. What a coincidence," he rolled his eyes in annoyance.</p>
<p>"Sasuke-kun, this is nonsense. He's on medication and he didn't show any aggressive behavior in these past weeks."</p>
<p>"My theory is that he wanted to kill Shion, for whatever reason. Maybe it had something to do with what we saw at the party. However, he miscalculated something and Shion was able to fight back, that's when he got stabbed. Still, he had the physical advantage and managed to kill the poor girl. But since he got injured during the process, he had to call an ambulance, or else he would have bled to death. And now, they're trying to cover up the whole thing just like they did with me all those years ago. He and his parents," he spit out the last words as though he considered the Uzumakis nothing more than disgusting insects.</p>
<p>Hinata was horrified by how casually Sasuke spoke about Naruto murdering someone. She refused to accept that her best friend truly believed what he just said. She was convinced Sasuke was losing his mind. Having seen Naruto again after all those years took a toll on him. It was understandable, but he was implying Naruto was a murderer. That far crossed a line for her.</p>
<p>"You don't believe me," the raven-haired boy noted, seeing her expression. "It doesn't matter, actually. I'm going to tell the police about my theory, and also about his mental state. I plan on involving my parents, too, since he clearly didn't respect my wishes to stay away from you. I just can't let someone this insane roam free, when –"</p>
<p>"No!" Hinata screamed and jumped up from her chair. She was in front of Sasuke in an instant and grabbed his shoulders as if she could hold him back. "Please, don't do this. I beg you. You're going to end up putting him in jail."</p>
<p>Hinata couldn't stop the tears streaming down her cheeks. Deep down, she knew Sasuke's words could be true. It had a slight possibility, she still remembered Naruto's expression upon seeing her blood some weeks ago. She was also sure Sasuke's parents could send Naruto to prison, even after all these years. They were influential, even the support of Naruto's father wouldn't be enough to escape punishment, she was certain about that.</p>
<p>She knew it was crazy to believe Sasuke's words even for a second, but she couldn't help it. Naruto had almost killed Sasuke after all when they were children. She truly trusted Naruto when he said he was able to overcome his condition, but still, she couldn't be sure.</p>
<p>But even if he did kill Shion… Hinata knew she was being unreasonable, but she thought it wouldn't matter for her. She wouldn't despise Naruto for it. She would still keep loving him. He must have had a reason anyway even if he was the one murdering Shion. It could even be self-defense or something like that. She just couldn't let Naruto fall.</p>
<p>Sasuke felt Hinata's grip tightening on his shoulders and his eyes widened in bewilderment. What was she doing? He had never seen Hinata like this before. He was about to say something when the door slung open behind his back. He almost fell as he was still leaning against it, but he managed to find his balance.</p>
<p>His mother stood in the door, her eyes were full of tears. She was accompanied by two police officers. Before Sasuke could say anything, one of the policemen grabbed his wrists and put handcuffs on them.</p>
<p>"Uchiha Sasuke, I am arresting you on suspicion of killing Fujimura Shion and severely wounding Uzumaki Naruto."</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0012"><h2>12. Chapter 12</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Naruto spent most of his days in bed in his room or occasionally on the couch in the living room. He was well enough already to go back to school, but he needed some more time to think.</p>
<p>He had killed Shion. He had done it.</p>
<p>It wasn't Kurama. It was him.</p>
<p>Sure, Kurama was also present and he was supporting him in his head, but in this case, Naruto was the one who grabbed the knife. Naruto was the one who pushed it all the way into the girl's chest. It was his instinct. Killing someone felt just as natural as an instinct to him and that was a horrifying revelation.</p>
<p>Even before this, he sometimes doubted if Kurama was truly another personality of his, but now, he couldn't think about anything else. Disturbing questions swirled in his mind all the time. What if Kurama was, in fact, him? What if it was just who Naruto truly was? A murderer, someone who craved blood and suffering. What if there was no Kurama, only Naruto? What if Kurama was the real him?</p>
<p>Kurama kept talking to Naruto in his head without giving him a break. He liked the idea of being Naruto's real self. He planted thoughts in Naruto's mind, thoughts that Naruto didn't want to think about. He whispered ideas that Naruto didn't want to hear.</p>
<p>'<em>I'm fucking insane, a fucking monster,'</em> the unsettling thought flashed through Naruto's mind.</p>
<p>'<em>You are not, you are just different.' </em>This again. Kurama's favorite thing to say. Naruto had always believed it, but now, he wasn't sure anymore.</p>
<p>Dr. Tsunade had come to talk to him not long after Naruto got released from the hospital and he suspected it was his parents' way to offer him help. Talking to someone was good, but it was hard to keep his deepest secret hidden. Tsunade was someone who could help him and Naruto was aware of that fact, however, he just couldn't tell her that he was the one who killed Shion. He didn't want to go to jail.</p>
<p>Dr. Tsunade had prescribed some different kinds of meds for him and Kushina had bought them. Naruto had thanked her with a bright smile and had taken them to his room as he always did. His mother went to get his pills every month. It was a shame that it was unnecessary, but of course, she didn't know that. Naruto pretended to take them, but to tell the truth, he usually just threw them away in the trash on his way to school.</p>
<p>Now Naruto was sitting on his bed and was holding his new set of meds in his hand. These were the new ones that Dr. Tsunade had prescribed for him after their talk. He was examining the bottle as if it could answer his questions. Was he wrong? Were his meds, in fact, necessary? Kurama always said they were better off without them, but Shion's death had changed everything for Naruto.</p>
<p>He popped the pill bottle open and took a pill out. He just stared at it for some time, listening to Kurama's voice in his head. Kurama launched into a tirade about why they didn't need that shit.</p>
<p>Naruto on the other hand couldn't help but let his thoughts flow toward Hinata. Would he hurt her eventually if he continued living without his meds?</p>
<p>He threw the small pill into his mouth and swallowed it, ignoring Kurama's screaming in his head.</p>
<p>'<em>What do you think you are doing? Do you want me to go away again? Me, the one who was always there for you? We are having fun and you can't deny that. Even if you mute me with those pills, you can't get rid of yourself.'</em></p>
<p>Naruto shook his head to free himself from Kurama's nonsense. He had already decided that he would resume taking his meds, no matter what his companion said. Naruto could no longer control Kurama as effectively as before and he feared he would hurt Hinata unintentionally.</p>
<p>The last person he wanted to hurt was Hinata. She was a great friend of his and she didn't turn away from Naruto even after that incident in the park. Even after learning the truth about him, she still supported him. Not only supported him but kept liking him, even after knowing about all the problems Naruto was facing. Or most of the problems, at least.</p>
<p>Hinata had been worried about Naruto while he had been at the hospital. She had sent texts every day even if Naruto couldn't answer. It felt nice to know she was thinking about him. Naruto was also thinking about her a lot. About her beautiful eyes, her gorgeous indigo hair, her soft lips…</p>
<p>Naruto had never felt anything like this before. He had liked girls of course, but not the way he liked Hinata. He loved that they could talk about anything without being bored. If he wanted to be honest, it was also exciting to try to keep it all a secret. It would be boring to be a normal couple.</p>
<p>Oh wait, but were they a couple? Not yet, Naruto thought. They didn't even have a normal date, but Naruto made a resolve to change that fact soon.</p>
<p>He was planning a way to finally ask Hinata out when he heard his phone ringing on his nightstand. He reached for the cellphone with his heart racing in his chest.</p>
<p>"Hey, Hinata-chan," he answered cheerfully but was taken aback when heavy sobbing was all he could hear from the other side of the line. "What's wrong?"</p>
<p>"S-Sasuke-kun… Police a-arrested S-Sasuke-kun…" she muttered and Naruto had to turn all his attention to her voice to be able to understand her.</p>
<p>"What are you talking about? Why?" Naruto unconsciously straightened his back as if he was trying to prepare himself for the answer.</p>
<p>"F-For attacking you and k-killing Shion. It just h-happened a f-few minutes ago. He and his parents are on the way to the i-interrogation. You have to c-come to the p-police, you have to tell them it's a m-misunderstanding. I'm a-also going there w-with Hidan."</p>
<p>It was hard to understand what Hinata was saying because of her constant crying, but when the information eventually reached Naruto's mind, his eyes widened in shock.</p>
<p>What? How? This couldn't be possible.</p>
<p>"I'm going. See you there," Naruto jumped up from his bed and ended the call.</p>
<p>He didn't even think twice about it, he just knew he wouldn't let this happen again. He couldn't save Gaara, but he could save Sasuke now. He could tell the police it wasn't him who attacked them. He wouldn't tell who it was then, but he could convince them it wasn't Sasuke. Naruto owed the boy that much.</p>
<p>He ran down the stairs and quickly put on his shoes. He was about to reach for the doorknob when his mother swirled in front of him, blocking his way to the door.</p>
<p>"You shouldn't go, Naruto," she whispered with an unexpectedly serious tone in her voice.</p>
<p>"Mom, you don't understand, Sasuke –"</p>
<p>"You stay here, Naruto," he heard his father's voice coming from behind him.</p>
<p>Naruto spun around and saw his father stepping out of his office. His usual smile was nowhere to be found on his face. Naruto glared at him for a moment before looking back at his mother who wore the exact same expression. There was no sign of the famous Uzumaki grin on her.</p>
<p>"But, Sasuke was –"</p>
<p>"It's either him or you, Naruto," Minato walked up to his son and put his hand firmly on his shoulder.</p>
<p>"What?" Naruto's gaze flickered at him, confusion was clear in his blue eyes.</p>
<p>"The evidence against him is solid, there's nothing you could do anyway. Please don't make it even harder for us than it already is." Minato's voice was cold, colder than ever.</p>
<p>Naruto was trying to put together what he had just heard. The police had solid evidence against Sasuke. But how? He wasn't even there, it shouldn't be possible. Or… was it the same situation as with Gaara? Someone planting false evidence? And how would his father even know about Sasuke's situation?</p>
<p>And then all of a sudden, it clicked.</p>
<p>"You know about me," he whispered, bewildered.</p>
<p>Kushina moved closer to her son, trying to embrace him, but Naruto moved away from her touch. He also shrugged his father's hand off his shoulder and took a few steps back to observe these two strangers he had been calling his parents.</p>
<p>Their faces weren't as expressionless as before. Naruto could clearly see worry in Kushina's eyes and in Minato's… was it sorrow? Naruto felt the room spinning around him and he shook his head to wake himself up from this nightmare. Unfortunately, he wasn't dreaming.</p>
<p>His parents knew. They knew he had been killing people.</p>
<p>And they did not just know. They were covering for him.</p>
<p>"You two did it, right? You created the false evidence against Gaara," Naruto demanded the truth with a trembling voice.</p>
<p>"We couldn't protect you any other way," Kushina's voice was so low it was almost inaudible.</p>
<p>"My friend is on death row innocently because of you! Are you fucking insane?" Naruto howled.</p>
<p>"Would you prefer if it were you?" Minato asked him calmly as he gave an encouraging squeeze on Kushina's hand next to him. "We know you can overcome your condition, Naruto, we believe in you. But until that, we have to do everything to not let you fall."</p>
<p>Naruto realized he was crying. His parents had put his friend on death row. No… it was actually Naruto who had done that, his parents just wanted to protect him. He forced them to do what they had done. It was the only way, but now, Sasuke would also end up in jail because of him. Because of his parents.</p>
<p>And the worst thing? Naruto really couldn't do anything. If he revealed it was him all along, the police would investigate all the false evidence. They would eventually get to his parents. They would be put in prison, possibly for life.</p>
<p>Naruto wanted to scream and break something. He wanted to punch his father in the guts for ruining Gaara's life.</p>
<p>He suddenly felt an uncomfortable tightness inside his chest. He felt like he couldn't breathe and yet, he realized he was taking deep, rapid breaths. He felt his heart hammering against his chest. He tried to crouch forward and massage his upper body to ease the pain but to no avail. He felt his limbs going numb and he started losing his balance.</p>
<p>He felt hands holding him from both sides and he figured they belonged to his parents. They were possibly trying to prevent him from falling to the ground. He heard his mother's voice from the distance saying he was hyperventilating.</p>
<p>Naruto wanted to tell them he had to help Sasuke, but he couldn't form words with his lips.</p>
<p>And then, his world went pitch black.</p>
<p>-x-x-x-x-</p>
<p>Naruto shot up in his bed. <em>'Please tell me it was only a nightmare,'</em> he begged as he reached for his phone on his nightstand. <em>'Oh no.'</em></p>
<p>He had 19 missed calls and numerous text messages from Hinata. He checked the time and moaned in pain as he concluded he was out for more than 2 hours. After a desperate sigh, he dialed Hinata's number with trembling fingers.</p>
<p>Naruto wasn't sure if she would pick it up, but he heard her voice after only one ring.</p>
<p>"Naruto," he immediately noticed the lack of the honorific Hinata always used, "where are you? I thought you were coming." Hinata didn't cry anymore, but her voice was faint, sounding as if she had cried until there weren't any tears remaining.</p>
<p>"I'm sorry, I… I fainted I guess, but I'm on my way now. What's going on there?" Naruto stood up from his bed in a rush. He still felt a bit dizzy and had to grab onto his desk not to lose his balance, but he didn't care.</p>
<p>"I'm not sure… they're still interrogating him. I'm here with his parents, but they don't tell anything to either of us," Hinata explained.</p>
<p>Naruto stiffened upon Hinata mentioning the Uchihas. It was obvious that Sasuke's parents would also be there, but Naruto didn't realize that until now. He didn't really remember them because he only saw them once or twice during his childhood, but he was sure they knew exactly who Naruto was.</p>
<p>Naruto couldn't even imagine their reaction to seeing him there. Naruto knew how hard it was for his father to convince them to drop charges after that incident at the birthday party and he was sure they would be livid.</p>
<p>Anyhow, Naruto had to go there to help Sasuke. He hoped the Uchihas would… well, not forgive him, but at least tolerate him after he cleared Sasuke's name.</p>
<p>"I will be there soon, I promise," he uttered hurriedly and ended the call.</p>
<p>Naruto opened the window of his room and peeked out. His room was on the second floor, but it wasn't that high and there was also a bush under him to arrive on. He briefly contemplated the odds of breaking his leg by doing this.</p>
<p>'<em>There's no other way, really,' </em>he sighed in defeat and climbed out. He was holding onto the ledge while straightening his body into a hanging position, trying to bring himself as close to the ground as possible in hopes of smoothing the impact on his legs. He sighed again and let go of the ledge.</p>
<p>Fortunately, he landed on the bush, but he still could feel a sudden pain in his right ankle. He stayed still for a minute to make sure his parents didn't hear the noise and slowly climbed out. He swiftly checked his injured ankle which was now swollen, but at least he could still move it.</p>
<p>Naruto tried to put his weight on it, but it sent jolts of pain through his whole leg, so he was sure he had sprained it upon landing. He hissed, but he was still determined to get himself somehow to the police station. Clenching his teeth, he started walking.</p>
<p>Normally, it was only a 5-minutes-walk from his house, but now, it took him almost 20 minutes to get there with his aching ankle. He had to stop and sit down on the sidewalk several times to rest a bit. Some people approached him, asking if he needed help, but he kindly hushed them away.</p>
<p>When he was finally standing in front of the police station, he called Hinata to come and help him. She was there in a few minutes. She was still wearing her school uniform, but when Naruto glanced at her, he almost couldn't recognize her. Her eyes were red and puffy from crying. Honestly, she looked rather miserable.</p>
<p>"What happened to you, Naruto-kun?" her eyes widened as she spotted Naruto frowning in pain. She rushed next to him and offered a shoulder for Naruto to support himself on which he gladly accepted.</p>
<p>"I had to make my exit through the window," he grinned at her. Naruto noticed Hinata didn't blush when he touched her. "Is he still in interrogation?" he asked, averting his gaze from the girl.</p>
<p>"Yes," Hinata nodded as they started slowly making their way toward the waiting room. "Thank you so much for coming. I know you and Sasuke aren't the best of friends but… it must be a misunderstanding. We have to help him."</p>
<p>Naruto nodded but otherwise stayed silent. He was nervous for two things: firstly, in a few minutes, he would meet Sasuke's parents. Naruto was certain it wouldn't be the smoothest of reunions, although he hoped the Uchihas would let him be after telling them he was here to help. Secondly, he still didn't know how to help exactly, but he had to come up with something that would clear Sasuke's name and wouldn't bring harm to his parents or, of course, himself.</p>
<p>'<em>So much to think about and yet you want to get rid of me. I could help you as I always do.' </em>Kurama was clearly pissed ever since Naruto had made his decision earlier today about taking his meds again. In fact, it was the first time Kurama said something since then, but Naruto thought he would have been better off silent.</p>
<p>Naruto's body tensed as they arrived in front of the waiting room. Only a thin door separated him and the Uchihas. Hinata must have sensed his nervousness since she tried smiling at him reassuringly.</p>
<p>"They're already aware that you're back in town. They know Sasuke allegedly attacked you. I think it's your opportunity to show them how much you've changed."</p>
<p>Hinata's words calmed Naruto's nerves a bit but he still felt like he would throw up, although he wasn't sure if it was because of his nervousness or the pain he felt in his ankle.</p>
<p>He gulped and let go of Hinata because he wanted to give her the opportunity to hide their close friendship if the situation turned violent.</p>
<p>Naruto took a deep breath and opened the door. The waiting room was almost empty, only Sasuke's parents were sitting in their seats in complete silence. When they heard the door's cracking, their eyes darted at the two newcomers. Naruto briefly saw the tremendous anger rise in Fugaku's eyes before he found himself shoved against the room's wall.</p>
<p>"You," Fugaku yelled, grabbing his shirt and pushing him viciously against the wall. "How do you have the nerve to come here?"</p>
<p>Naruto shut his eyes closed, partly because he didn't want to look at Fugaku and partly because of the agonizing pain in his ankle. He really felt like throwing up now.</p>
<p>"Look at me!" Fugaku howled.</p>
<p>"Fugaku-san," Hinata tried to ease the tension, but her voice was so low it was entirely possible that the man didn't even hear her.</p>
<p>"Fugaku," Mikoto stepped next to her husband and tried to unlock his fingers from Naruto's shirt. "I feel the same way as you do, but you will only bring trouble on yourself."</p>
<p>"Father," they heard a new voice entering the room. "Mother is right. Please don't make this even more complicated."</p>
<p>Hinata's head swung at the newcomer who was wearing a police uniform. Itachi. He was a high-ranking police officer despite his young age. He was often called a genius and he specialized in murder cases, but as Konoha was a rather peaceful city before all this madness, he mostly worked on cases of other cities.</p>
<p>Fugaku reluctantly let go of Naruto who collapsed on the floor. He felt a pulsating ache in his ankle which was so intense he was close to fainting. His eyes widened in surprise when he felt Hinata's petite hands helping him stand up. So, she didn't try to hide their friendship from Sasuke's parents.</p>
<p>Hinata helped him move to a chair to sit down and crouched down in front of him to examine his ankle.</p>
<p>"You should get that ankle checked. It looks bad," Itachi glared at the blond. His voice was completely neutral.</p>
<p>Hinata reached for her backpack and took out an ointment she always kept with herself and applied it carefully. Fugaku and Mikoto looked at her, their eyes showed a visible feeling of betrayment. They loved Hinata like a daughter, and she was here, helping the boy who caused all their misery meanwhile their son was being interrogated on suspicion of murder.</p>
<p>"I came to testify in favor of Sasuke," Naruto managed to breathe out the words. "I'm sure he wasn't the attacker."</p>
<p>"How can you be sure? You already gave several testimonies and you stated in all of them that you don't know who the attacker was," Itachi waited for him to answer but when Naruto stayed silent, he continued. "Besides, solid evidence points toward Sasuke. He also had a motive, and –"</p>
<p>"How can you say something like this, Itachi?" Mikoto interrupted him with tears in her eyes. "He's your brother. How can you say it was him? Don't you know him? He wouldn't do something like this. As a police officer, you should work on finding the real culprit and the one who tries to frame our Sasuke."</p>
<p>"Mother, I can't work on this case due to personal involvement. However, my colleagues told me it's a clear case, unfortunately. And you," he turned to Naruto again. "It's not the time to pity him. Giving false testimony is a crime."</p>
<p>"It's all your fault, Uzumaki, I hope you know that," Fugaku hissed while holding a crying Mikoto. "I shouldn't have trusted your father's word. A politician, tch, they do nothing but lie. Not only he lied about you not coming near to my son but he even managed to make it impossible to press charges against you again in that case. I honestly can't blame Sasuke if he really tried to kill you."</p>
<p>"Father," Itachi warned him to watch his words in a cold tone.</p>
<p>Naruto's eyes widened as Fugaku's words dawned on him. Just how influential was his father? Deep down, he was grateful for him for always protecting him, but he also started despising him for it. How many more friends would he frame just to save him?</p>
<p>'<em>You're being ridiculous, Naruto. You admire him for having the guts to conspire to this extent just to save your ass. He and your mother are the real heroes here. We're extremely lucky.'</em></p>
<p>Kurama was somehow right, but Naruto knew this all was so wrong. So wrong, but he let it happen. Was Naruto a bad person? He was sure the answer was yes.</p>
<p>"What will happen to Sasuke?" Naruto asked Itachi without looking at him. Hinata was already done with applying the ointment and she was sitting next to Naruto now, squeezing his forearm while waiting for Itachi's answer.</p>
<p>"It depends. If he pleads guilty, I would say he could get off with 15-20 years in prison," Itachi's voice was surprisingly calm. He really was a professional.</p>
<p>Hinata gasped next to Naruto, covering her mouth with her hand in shock. Mikoto started crying even louder in Fugaku's arms. The oldest Uchiha tried hiding his pain, but it was clearly etched onto his face.</p>
<p>Naruto clenched his fists in frustration as he realized he couldn't do anything alone. It wasn't just about him, it was also about Shion. He was certain the girl's parents would want someone to be punished and with the evidence the police had, he couldn't convince them Sasuke wasn't the culprit without bringing suspicion on himself.</p>
<p>'<em>Shit.'</em></p>
<p>Naruto felt small and powerless. Honestly, he really wanted to kill someone now and of course, Kurama was supporting this idea in his head. But again, if he kept doing the murders, his parents would need to keep up with whatever they were doing to evade suspicion falling on Naruto. He was sure it got harder for them with time's passing, both mentally and physically.</p>
<p>"You should all go home. Father, Mother, you too," Itachi cut them off before they could protest. "They will keep Sasuke in tonight for sure, there is no point in staying here any longer. We will know more tomorrow."</p>
<p>Everybody knew that Itachi was right, but neither of them wanted to leave Sasuke behind. After a long silence, Hinata was the first to make a move, taking her phone in her hand to call her driver. After ending the call, she sat still, lost in her thoughts for a few minutes before standing up.</p>
<p>"Hidan should be here soon. Come, Naruto-kun, we will take you home. You shouldn't walk with a sprained ankle," she whispered.</p>
<p>Hinata held out an arm to help Naruto stand up. He put his arm around her neck and she let him put a great amount of his weight on her. It felt strange not to blush or feel her pounding heart when Naruto was this close to her, but at the moment, all she could think about was Sasuke.</p>
<p>Was it possible? Did he really try to kill Naruto? She didn't think so and it seemed like Naruto himself didn't believe it either. However, Sasuke was saying crazy stuff just a few hours ago. Could it be that he had lost his mind and attacked the blond? Or was he really framed by someone?</p>
<p>But then, who would do that? If she wanted to think logically, the only person who could gain something by putting Sasuke in prison was Naruto. If she considered Sasuke's theory to be true - which was unlikely, but still - it would make sense that Naruto tried to frame Sasuke. But then again, he wouldn't have come here to help him.</p>
<p>When she had first called Naruto and he had promised to come but didn't show up, she almost believed in Sasuke's theory. She had thought it over once again and she could see a plausible scenario. However, when Naruto called her again and did actually come, even with an injured ankle, she was deeply ashamed of herself. How could she even consider this as a possibility? Naruto was not the same Naruto whom Sasuke knew from his childhood.</p>
<p>Hinata could feel the scornful glare of the Uchihas on herself while she was helping Naruto to walk out. They didn't say anything, but they didn't even have to as Hinata knew them too well now. She knew they felt betrayed by her and she couldn't blame them. She couldn't even imagine having a kid almost stabbed to death at a birthday party by his friend.</p>
<p>"Hinata-chan, I'm sorry. I couldn't do anything," Naruto said suddenly when they were already sitting next to each other in the car.</p>
<p>"Not your fault, Naruto-kun."</p>
<p>Naruto flinched. Only if she knew how much it was his fault.</p>
<p>He reached out to hold the girl's hand and she let him. They didn't say any more words during the short ride to Naruto's house, but their silence wasn't unpleasant.</p>
<p>When they arrived, Hidan helped Naruto out of the car while Hinata went to ring the bell. She didn't feel the need to hide from Naruto's parents anymore. She had to ring the bell three times until a sleepy Kushina dressed in a red robe opened the door. Right, it was nearing midnight, they must have been sleeping already.</p>
<p>Kushina's eyes widened in surprise as she recognized Hinata standing in front of her, but before she could ask anything, she noticed her son behind the indigo-haired girl, supported by someone whom she had never met.</p>
<p>"Don't say anything, Mom," was the only thing Naruto mumbled before giving directions to Hidan about where his room was. While Hidan helped Naruto up the stairs, Hinata politely waited outside.</p>
<p>"Why can't this boy just stay still for once?" Kushina fumed in silent fury.</p>
<p>"Don't punish him, please. He just wanted to help my friend. It's all my fault, I was the one who asked him to come. I apologize," Hinata bowed deep.</p>
<p>"Please, raise your head, Hinata-chan," Kushina laughed nervously, gesturing her to straighten up and Hinata obeyed. "Naruto said something about Sasuke-kun being his attacker. I'm sorry it turned out to be him, it must be hard for you."</p>
<p>"It is, but I'm sure the police will find out the truth about the attack soon," Hinata answered confidently.</p>
<p>Hinata noticed a weird shadow running through Kushina's face for a second. It was odd, but she decided it must be stress. After all, they were talking about the alleged attacker of her son. It was understandable if she wanted someone to get punished.</p>
<p>As Hidan returned, Hinata said goodbye to Kushina and strolled back to the car. On the ride home, she was thinking about the events of the day. So much happened in so little time.</p>
<p>Could life be even worse than it was right now?</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>I'm very, very stressed out about your reactions to the plot twist in this chapter. Hope you don't hate me! Would love to see your reactions though, did you see that coming? I tried to place subtle hints in previous chapters about Minato and Kushina, but I'm not sure if you could spot them.</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0013"><h2>13. Chapter 13</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Naruto had to stay in bed for a week because of his sprained ankle. Fortunately, the injury looked worse than it actually was. The doctor examining it said it should be fine after a week of strict bed rest. Naruto got a compression wrap around the injury and was sentenced to lay still in bed. At least he had plenty of time to think.</p>
<p>He was mainly thinking about his parents. About all the things they had done for him ever since he was a little kid. He caused them so much trouble and still, they supported him unconditionally. Their love for him was truly limitless. In Naruto's opinion, it wasn't even normal.</p>
<p>Of course, a parent tended to love their child even if said child was a criminal, but his parents not only loved him. They were actively covering for his crimes. They not only knew about all the horrible things Naruto had done but even helped him escape authorities by creating false evidence. Which could easily earn them life imprisonment by the way.</p>
<p>Naruto was conflicted on this matter. He was thankful for them, but at the same time, he also despised them. How could they look in the mirror after all this? How could they laugh, relax, or just keep on with their lives knowing they had framed two innocents? One of which was most probably facing more than a decade in prison and the other one was on <em>fucking death row</em>. While he, the real perpetrator, was free.</p>
<p>'<em>How can</em><em><strong> you</strong></em><em> look in a mirror? They just created false evidence, but </em><em><strong>you</strong></em><em> were actually killing people.'</em></p>
<p>Kurama wanted to hurt him. Naruto tried to tell himself he wasn't a bad person. He wasn't a murderer, it was Kurama. But then, he remembered Shion. Shion, whom he had killed, without Kurama.</p>
<p>'<em>What's done is done. At least from now on, we don't have to worry about getting caught. Someone will always look out for us. Can't wait to get back to business.'</em></p>
<p>Naruto wanted to rip Kurama out of his head. He felt the urge to cry, scream, or punch something, but he just laid there, staring at the ceiling of his room.</p>
<p>The emptiness inside him completely engulfed him. He didn't know who his parents were anymore. He didn't know who Kurama was anymore. He didn't know who he was anymore.</p>
<p>He heard the crack of his door as it was opened, but he didn't even bat an eye. He stubbornly continued staring at the ceiling.</p>
<p>"I brought you dinner, Naruto. It's ramen," whispered his mother's voice. She came inside and put a big bowl of ramen on Naruto's nightstand. "I leave it here for you."</p>
<p>Kushina knew Naruto wouldn't talk to her, so she didn't see the need to push him into a conversation. Ever since the truth came out, he didn't talk to either her or Minato. They had tried to explain their actions to him, but he completely ignored them. They weren't sure if their words even reached his mind.</p>
<p>They never wanted Naruto to know that they were behind all the false evidence. They had hoped he would be better before they would be forced to do the same as they had done with Gaara. They truly believed Naruto would start taking his medication again. They were convinced that it was just a phase, that he was just rebelling. However, they all got entangled in this mess and it didn't seem to resolve soon.</p>
<p>Yes, Kushina and Minato had always suspected Naruto wasn't taking his medication. It became quite clear when he committed his first murder in Suna, but Kushina kept buying him new bottles nonetheless. She always anticipated that the next bottle would be the one that would make a difference.</p>
<p>It never was though. Until now.</p>
<p>"Mom, could you buy my pills?" Naruto suddenly asked her without tearing his gaze away from the ceiling. "This one is empty," he pointed at the empty pill bottle on his nightstand.</p>
<p>Kushina gasped in surprise. Could this be true? Did Naruto start taking his meds again? She took the pill bottle in her hand. Judging by its weight, it was truly empty. She pressed it against her chest when she felt tears of joy forming in her eyes.</p>
<p>"Mom."</p>
<p>Kushina lifted her gaze at her son. Naruto had pushed himself into a sitting position and was looking into her eyes. He finally talked to her after long days of silence.</p>
<p>"Mom, why did you do it? I don't deserve this. I deserve to rot in prison," he whispered, his voice was full of pain.</p>
<p>"No," Kushina sat on the edge of his bed and bent forward to cup his face with her hands, pressing her forehead against his. "You are my son. No matter what you do, I will never give up on you. I believe in you and so does your father. We know you can overcome Kurama. You just need time and an opportunity to live a normal life. Prison is not the answer for every crime."</p>
<p>"But what about Gaara? What about Sasuke?" Naruto pushed his mother away a bit to examine her expression.</p>
<p>"It hurts us as much as it hurts you. But if I'm forced to choose between you and anyone else, I will always choose you. Even if I had to choose between your life and my life, I would choose yours. I would die for you."</p>
<p>Kushina's sharp stare signaled that she was dead serious. Naruto didn't know how to feel about this at all. He loved his parents so much, but they were the same as him. Criminals. Maybe it ran in the family?</p>
<p>Naruto hated life right now. Was he a bad person for wanting to continue his life and forget all of this? Would he be able to forget about Gaara and Sasuke at all?</p>
<p>He knew if he took his meds regularly, he could live a normal life. A life without Kurama. He had already experienced that in Suna. He realized now, after a year of stopping with his meds, that everyone was right. Naruto wasn't the same person without his medication. Kurama had a personality too strong for him to suppress. Naruto needed those meds to overcome the bloodthirst inside his head.</p>
<p>"I'm not sure if I can live with this," he moaned painfully.</p>
<p>"You can. You can," Kushina squeezed his hand. "You just have to keep taking your meds. If you aren't stopping again, everything will turn out to be fine."</p>
<p>Naruto nodded. He didn't want to kill anyone else. He didn't want his parents to go to prison. He didn't want anyone else to be convicted instead of him. He just wanted to be Naruto again. Just Naruto.</p>
<p>'<em>You will regret this, you just wait. You will see. Even if you take those meds, you can't get rid of me. I will always be here. I am the real you.'</em></p>
<p>Naruto's eyes twitched in annoyance, but he tried to ignore Kurama in his head. He couldn't wait until the meds slowly but surely suppressed this evil entity inside him.</p>
<p>Kushina stood up from Naruto's bed when the doorbell suddenly rang. She smiled at Naruto and turned to leave the room. "It must be Hinata-chan, I'm letting her in. I will go buy your meds. Take care," she said cheerfully as she left the room.</p>
<p>Hinata. She came every day to bring Naruto her notes. Since the arrest of Sasuke, there was no need to pretend they weren't friends. She could come to his house whenever she wanted now, Naruto's parents didn't mind. In fact, they liked Hinata.</p>
<p>Naruto loved when she was here. She was the only one who he talked to in these few days. He had refused the company of his parents and his therapist, but not the company of Hinata. He desperately wanted to share everything with her, but he just couldn't. How could he?</p>
<p>Hinata stepped into his room and Naruto's face lit up from seeing her. She was slightly skinnier than she was a week ago. She had lost a little weight due to stress. It was most visible on her face because her cutely rounded cheeks turned slightly sunken. Big, dark circles were painted under her eyes which she tried to hide with some face powder, but Naruto still noticed them. He figured she had trouble with sleeping.</p>
<p>"How are you, Naruto-kun?" she smiled at him faintly while sitting down on his bed.</p>
<p>"I can leave the bed tomorrow, finally. I thought I would lay here forever," he grinned at her, but when she only responded with a small smile, his expression turned more serious. "Any news?"</p>
<p>"I talked to Itachi-kun not so long ago. He said Sasuke-kun pleaded not guilty during his arraignment. He was offered a plea bargain, but he doesn't want to accept it, so most probably the case will go on trial. Until that, he remains in custody. His family got him the best lawyer in town, but things aren't looking good for him. Solid evidence against him, you know," Hinata answered silently.</p>
<p>Naruto took Hinata's hand and squeezed it, trying to reassure her. When she was with him, they usually avoided the topic of the arrest and just talked about school stuff. Now, on the other hand, Hinata was prepared to voice the thoughts that were bothering her.</p>
<p>"He's my best friend, but you know," she continued, "I just want this to be over, either with him being convicted or released. I know how terrible it sounds, but I just don't want to worry about this anymore. I just want to go back to my boring life."</p>
<p>Tears streamed down her face and Naruto embraced her in his arms. He was stroking her hair and let her cry it out. All he desired at that moment was to help her somehow.</p>
<p>'<em>Kurama, I may need you one last time.'</em></p>
<p>-x-x-x-x-</p>
<p>Naruto returned to school after two whole weeks of absence. It felt strange to be in this building again. The last time he walked these corridors Shion was still alive, Sasuke still attended classes, and he still lived in fool's paradise.</p>
<p>While he walked toward his classroom, he felt the disturbing glances other students shot at his back. They either pitied him or hated him, he wasn't sure. He heard whispers behind his back about him and Shion. He even caught the faint voice of a girl saying he should have died instead of Shion.</p>
<p>Naruto tried his best to ignore all of this. They didn't know anything about him or about Shion. He wanted to shout at them about Shion trying to kill him, but who would believe him? And what else would he say? That he killed her instead and his parents framed Sasuke for it, so Naruto could be here now? What a mess.</p>
<p>A gentle hand was placed on Naruto's shoulder and he turned around, catching sight of Ino. Naruto just realized at that moment that he didn't even think about any of his friends during these two weeks. He didn't even open their group chat to check what they were talking about. Or they weren't even talking at all? Naruto didn't remember if he saw messages in there. They didn't contact him directly, that one thing was sure.</p>
<p>"Naruto," Ino smiled at him, "welcome back."</p>
<p>Naruto let out a breath he didn't even know he was holding in. He wasn't sure what he had expected from the blonde girl exactly, but maybe some anger or screams or disgust. Ino knew Sasuke way longer than she knew him, so Naruto would've understood a bad reaction. But the girl just stood there, smiling at him. Well, she wouldn't be smiling if she knew the truth.</p>
<p>"Ino, how are you? It must be hard for you and the others."</p>
<p>"We are holding up. Sasuke is our friend, but there are some things that cannot be forgiven." Naruto flinched, but Ino didn't seem to notice. "I wanted to apologize because we didn't contact you or visit you at all. We needed time I think," she continued.</p>
<p>Naruto just nodded and started walking with her toward their respective classrooms. Ino also heard the whispers behind the blond boy's back as they passed in front of other students. She shot disapproving looks toward them and the whispers immediately stopped.</p>
<p>They reached Ino's classroom first. Naruto waved her goodbye, but before he could walk away to get to his own classroom, she grabbed his arm, forcing him to halt. He turned to face the girl again, puzzled.</p>
<p>"I lied. I and Kiba are holding up, but Sakura isn't doing well. It's… very hard for her. Whatever she does or says, please don't be angry with her."</p>
<p>Naruto's face darkened. He figured his pink-haired friend wouldn't want to see him now.</p>
<p>To tell the truth, Naruto had instantly developed a small crush on Sakura on his first day. However, he had noticed after a few days that he wouldn't have a chance with her. Sakura was all about Sasuke, so Naruto just let it go. He didn't mind it anymore though. He now had Hinata.</p>
<p>He was sure Sakura currently had a hard time. It surely would be tough to accept that the love of her life had murdered a girl and had attacked her friend. Naruto wondered if she had any idea about Sasuke's possible motives. He doubted Sasuke had shared anything with the girl, so it must have been an even bigger shock for her. Out of the blue, Sasuke was an alleged murderer.</p>
<p>Naruto wished he had come up with something to say to Sakura in advance. He had the time to figure something out while he was on bed rest, but honestly, more important matters had occupied his mind. However, as the confrontation with Sakura was fast approaching, he wished he had a plan.</p>
<p>Naruto watched as Ino entered her classroom. He put his weight from one leg to another unsurely before he sighed and made his way toward his own classroom.</p>
<p>When he stepped inside, his class went dead silent. They were staring at him just as they had done on his first days here. However, this time it wasn't curiosity that Naruto spotted in their eyes. It wasn't even anger or pity. It was… surprise, maybe?</p>
<p>Naruto guessed they weren't expecting to see him so soon after the recent events. He ignored their stares and looked for Hinata and Sakura, roving his eyes over the classroom. They were both sitting on their assigned seats. They were the only ones who weren't gawking at him as if he was an alien. Hinata was reading her textbook, probably preparing for class. Sakura, on the other hand, was just looking out the window with unfocused eyes.</p>
<p>Naruto pondered for a moment on what he should do, then walked to the empty seat next to Hinata.</p>
<p>"Do you mind if I sit next to you?" he asked the indigo-haired girl with a small smile. She shifted her eyes at him, happiness was glimmering in her lavender gaze. She was about to answer when another voice aggressively interjected.</p>
<p>"That's Sasuke-kun's seat. He will be mad when he comes back."</p>
<p>Naruto and Hinata stared silently at Sakura. Neither of them knew what they should say.</p>
<p>Hinata got used to Sakura being more hostile toward everyone these days, but she still didn't know how to deal with it. Despite knowing the girl loved Sasuke, she didn't understand her. Sasuke was Hinata's best friend, so she really understood Sakura's bitter feelings about the situation, but being aggressive wasn't helping anyone.</p>
<p>Hinata watched as Naruto reluctantly moved away from the empty seat next to her. She wanted to tell him to stay and sit down, but she didn't want to cause any more problems. They had enough already, they didn't need a furious Sakura added to the pile. She followed Naruto's movement with her eyes as he took out his school supplies from his backpack.</p>
<p>Naruto smiled at her reassuringly and she smiled back at him. When Naruto was near, she believed everything would be fine.</p>
<p>-x-x-x-x-</p>
<p>They all sat together during lunchtime, it was only Sasuke missing. They were eating their lunches in total silence which was a rather eerie sight because they were usually the loudest group around. The tension between them was partly because of Naruto, but more because of Sakura.</p>
<p>After the news had spread in school about Sasuke being the one behind the attack on Naruto and Shion, all hell broke loose. Sasuke's fangirls were devastated, they would scream at anyone talking about the case. Some students stated it was bound to happen as Sasuke's hostile behavior toward the blond was as clear as day. Others were simply shocked.</p>
<p>Sakura was another case. She screamed, she cried, she punched everyone saying anything bad about Sasuke. She even got herself a warning from the principal. Ever since Sasuke got arrested, she had lost her usual cheerful self. She truly believed in Sasuke's innocence and she was ready to protect his reputation at all costs.</p>
<p>Although, she refused to talk about the whole affair. When Ino or Kiba asked Hinata about anything connected to Sasuke, Sakura simply stood up and walked away. When Kiba once tried to talk to her about her feelings, she punched him so hard it gave him a nasty black eye. After that, neither of them wanted to bring the topic up.</p>
<p>"Yo, Naruto, I didn't say it before, but it's nice to see you here again," Kiba grinned at his blond friend to ease the tension between them.</p>
<p>"Thanks, Kiba. I couldn't wait to come back. You know, I had to stay in bed for two weeks. Can you believe it? Me, all that energy wasted," Naruto grinned back at him, secretly cheering on Kiba for finally breaking the silence. He didn't like the tense aura surrounding them.</p>
<p>"We should do something after school. Do you want to see a movie? You should come too, Hinata, it has been a while since you last joined us," Ino jumped into the conversation cheerfully. She had had enough, too. Life must go on.</p>
<p>"Um… Yeah, it would be fun." Hinata let her mouth curl up in a small smile. She really needed to do things other than worrying about Sasuke. She couldn't do anything to help him anyway.</p>
<p>"Are you fucking serious?" Sakura jumped onto her feet and slammed her hands on the table. The joyful mood that was slowly building up immediately died down. "How can you act as if nothing happened? Our friend is wrongly suspected of murder. He's possibly suffering in a cell right now and you're here, talking about going to the movies. You should be ashamed of yourselves," she screamed and left the dumbfounded group behind.</p>
<p>"I will go after her." Naruto stood up after a long silence and ignoring the protests he received, he rushed away to find the pink-haired girl.</p>
<p>It wasn't hard to locate her. She was sitting outside of the building on the stairs, sobbing. Naruto sat down next to her and said nothing. He just wanted to support her with his presence.</p>
<p>"Can you go away?" Sakura barked at him through her tears.</p>
<p>"No."</p>
<p>Naruto expected Sakura to curse him and leave him there, but she didn't budge. His eyes widened in surprise when Sakura unexpectedly bent her head on his shoulder. He put his arm around her and let her cry her heart out. He didn't know how long it lasted until Sakura finally calmed down, but he didn't even care. He would've sat here all day if that was what Sakura wanted.</p>
<p>"I'm sorry, Naruto," she wiped away any remaining tears from her face as she distanced herself from the blond.</p>
<p>"Don't worry about it, Sakura-chan. I know what you're going through now, I know all too well. I also believe Sasuke was wrongly arrested."</p>
<p>Sakura couldn't hide her shock when her mouth flung open. She had been certain that Naruto hated Sasuke and was happy he wasn't around anymore. After all, she had spent enough time in their presence to notice how cold the two boys were acting around each other. She was sure they had some kind of conflict, but she never dared to ask either of them about it.</p>
<p>"These past two weeks were hard for me too, you can believe me when I say this," he continued when Sakura didn't react to his previous words. "I had a lot of time to think. I don't know if you heard it or not, but I tried to testify in Sasuke's favor on the night he was arrested. They didn't let me though."</p>
<p>Sakura gasped. She didn't know that. Maybe she was wrong for refusing to talk to Hinata about Sasuke. Maybe she was wrong for not contacting Naruto.</p>
<p>"It will be hard to clear his name, but don't worry." Naruto's blue eyes bore into Sakura's green ones. "I will help him for sure, no matter what. It's a promise of a lifetime."</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Just a short disclaimer. I do not agree with what Kushina says in this chapter. It's just, you know, her point of view. I felt like I should clarify.</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0014"><h2>14. Chapter 14</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>'<em>Finally, after such a long time... Let's have some fun,' </em>Kurama laughed in Naruto's head. <em>'Just let me do all of it. It will be a beautiful sight, I promise.'</em></p>
<p>Naruto took a deep breath and obeyed the voice in his head. He practically felt as his own consciousness slowly faded away and he became Kurama. It would be the last time, he whispered to himself once more before Naruto disappeared and only Kurama stayed.</p>
<p>"Hello, beautiful," he looked into the wide eyes of the girl trembling in panic at his feet. "Let's begin, shall we?"</p>
<p>"P-Please…" The girl laying on the ground shifted and pushed her forehead against his feet as a sign of complete submission. "P-please don't h-hurt me. I w-won't tell a-anyone."</p>
<p>Naruto squatted down and placed his hand on the girl's shiny red hair. The color of it reminded him of his mother which somehow gave him an odd feeling of comfort. He gently stroked the girl's hair and cooed, "I've told you already. It will be fun, don't worry."</p>
<p>He abruptly grabbed a handful of the girl's hair and forced her to stand up by pulling it roughly as he straightened up from his squatting position. The girl screamed from the sudden pain in her scalp and desperately tried to unlock Naruto's fingers from her locks. Naruto kicked her in her stomach in return. She collapsed again from the sudden breathlessness caused by the unexpected assault.</p>
<p>"I can already tell that you will provide the most fun since that blue-eyed chick in Suna," Naruto murmured as he pulled the girl up by her hair again.</p>
<p>The girl's eyes widened in shock after she realized the meaning behind Naruto's words. Only a few weeks ago, the newspapers were loaded with articles about that one specific murder in Suna. The murder of the blue-eyed girl. It was the last one committed by Suna's infamous serial killer.</p>
<p>The police still didn't know who she was exactly since her body was unrecognizable and they couldn't find a match for her DNA in their database. They named her the blue-eyed girl even though nobody knew for sure if she truly had blue eyes or not. A note was discovered next to her dead body with a sentence written on it by a feminine hand. Most probably the victim herself was forced to write it down before she died.</p>
<p>The note said <em>I had blue eyes.</em></p>
<p>Her eyes had been gouged out.</p>
<p>"Nah, don't look at me like that. I have other plans with you," Naruto said, running his tongue over his teeth. The move made him look animalistic. "Stay still," he muttered and let go of her hair.</p>
<p>He turned around to reach for his backpack. Although, the moment he turned the girl attempted to escape. They were in an abandoned building in the middle of the old industrial area of Konoha, but it wasn't too far from the populated part of the town. She would need to run fast enough and she would eventually find someone wandering on the streets.</p>
<p>She reached the door rather quickly but when she tore it open, she halted as she realized it wasn't the door that led to the street. It opened to another area of the hauntingly empty building they were in.</p>
<p>"Sorry, wrong door," the chilling voice of Naruto came from behind her. "You should've paid more attention to your surroundings than to me," he smirked.</p>
<p>Naruto had met this girl earlier this evening. He had been walking around to pick someone suitable for his plan when the girl approached him. She was bold and suggestively introduced herself to Naruto. Her name was Sāra or something like that, Naruto didn't really remember the unimportant details. She told him that she liked him and asked if he would be up for a walk.</p>
<p>Naruto felt like today was his lucky day. The girl was exactly what he needed right now. Young, around his age, and beautiful. She was the perfect victim for his plan to work out the way he wanted. Kurama also agreed, so Naruto accepted the invitation. After they started walking Naruto deliberately directed her toward the industrial area.</p>
<p>She didn't seem alerted, but she did notice where they were heading to. When she asked him about it, Naruto winked at her and said they would have some fun there. Well, actually, it was Kurama who said that. Naruto let Kurama be more in control of him when he began walking with the girl. He didn't feel like he could go through with his plan without Kurama.</p>
<p>So, the girl was up for the fun. She most probably imagined something entirely different in connection with having fun in an abandoned area. When they got inside one of the buildings, the girl tried to kiss him, but all she got instead of a kiss was Naruto strangling her. She had almost lost consciousness before Naruto finally let go of her neck and she collapsed to the ground, trembling at his feet and begging for mercy.</p>
<p>She now most probably knew that she let her only chance of escaping fly away. She spun around to face the blond boy. Naruto was holding a knife in his gloved hand and stared directly at her.</p>
<p>She felt her stomach turn as she realized the graveness of the situation.</p>
<p>She knew this was it for her. She couldn't escape the boy.</p>
<p>She shut her eyes closed and cried silently, hoping she wouldn't suffer for too long.</p>
<p>-x-x-x-x-</p>
<p>"You are being reckless," Minato dropped today's newspaper on the table.</p>
<p>Naruto was eating his breakfast this Saturday morning when the sudden appearance of the newspaper made him flinch. He pushed his coffee and plate aside and took the newspaper in his hands. <em>Brutal Murder in Konoha</em>, the headline said. He skimmed through the article and his lips formed a small smile when he finally found what he was looking for.</p>
<p>
  <em>The missing murder weapon of the previous incident has been found on the crime scene. Investigators believe the two murders were committed by the same person whose main targets are young women. It is under investigation if the previous cases are related to these recent ones. The current suspect was arrested wrongfully and has already been released from custody.</em>
</p>
<p>Naruto beamed. It worked. His plan really worked. Sasuke's name had been cleared.</p>
<p>Naruto had figured that Sasuke could only be proven innocent if the police found the weapon used to murder Shion. Before Naruto had passed out of blood loss after Shion's accidental murder, he had managed to hide the weapon in the alley. It was a gamble, but he had to try. He knew his fingerprints were on the knife. It was a true surprise when he learned the police somehow didn't manage to find it.</p>
<p>Naruto went back to the alley the day before he murdered the red-haired girl to retrieve the knife. He thoroughly cleaned it from any remaining fingerprints and decided to use it one more time. It was the only way to get Sasuke out of prison.</p>
<p>Naruto was determined to help his raven-haired classmate, for several reasons. First of all, he owed him after nearly stabbing him to death. Secondly, he couldn't help Gaara, but he didn't want someone else suffering because of him again. Thirdly, he knew he would also help Hinata if he did something for Sasuke. With Sasuke out, she wouldn't need to worry anymore. And lastly, he had promised it to Sakura. Naruto just couldn't go back on his word.</p>
<p>Naruto was only worried about one thing now. He didn't exactly know what the solid evidence against Sasuke was. What kind of solid evidence could his parents fabricate? He had no idea, but he didn't want to ask them. He just wished the police wouldn't find out who had fabricated it.</p>
<p>"I thought you're taking your meds," Kushina walked out of the kitchen and stood next to Naruto.</p>
<p>"I am, this was the last one," Naruto answered. "I couldn't just sit back and let Sasuke rot in prison, <em>innocently</em>," he emphasized the last word.</p>
<p>Minato's and Kushina's faces darkened. They most probably were also thinking about the fabricated evidence and its possible link to their family.</p>
<p>"Still, this was a risky move. I do realize it would take some time before Kurama is pushed back enough in your mind, but you have to be careful, Naruto. We may not be able to save you every time when you're dangerously close to being busted."</p>
<p>Naruto almost chuckled. It was strange to hear his father talk about murder so casually.</p>
<p>"This, in particular, wasn't necessary," Minato continued and pointed at a paragraph in the article. Naruto tilted his head as he read it.</p>
<p>
  <em>The body of the victim was found heavily mutilated. Several fingers of hers were cut off and the tongue has been also removed. Investigators had reported severe burn marks on different parts of the body. The sentence 'it was me' was carved into the torso area. Other wounds could possibly be found on the body, but the police chose not to share any more details on the condition of the remains.</em>
</p>
<p>Well, they had shared it detailed enough, Naruto thought. They didn't share everything for sure, for example, they left out the fact that Naruto had left the knife in the body as a point on the letter i. But still, they did share the most gruesome details which was especially strange. Did the police want to create fear or something?</p>
<p>"This was torture," Minato's voice trembled a bit and Kushina's eyes twitched upon hearing the last word.</p>
<p>Naruto stayed silent and fixed his gaze on his breakfast. He was also shocked when he first caught sight of what Kurama had done. Naruto figured Kurama was angry because he started taking his meds again. That must be the reason behind his rampage. Kurama most probably did realize that Naruto wasn't planning on giving him another chance to live out his fantasies.</p>
<p>Naruto wondered if his parents now regretted helping him. After all, it was the second time Kurama not only killed someone but even tortured the victim out of enjoyment. Kushina did say they would stand by his side no matter what, but this could be a bit too much, even for them.</p>
<p>"It was Kurama," Naruto voiced his usual excuse. "I'm taking my meds, it won't happen again, I promise. Just please, don't read about it anymore. I don't want you to look at me and imagine all of that."</p>
<p>'<em>We will see about that,' </em>Kurama commented in his head.</p>
<p>"Didn't I tell ya?" Kushina hugged Naruto's shoulders. "No matter what you do. We love you."</p>
<p>Minato also moved closer to rub his hair gently and smiled at him reassuringly. Naruto felt tears forming in his eyes. He didn't deserve their love.</p>
<p>He loved his family so much.</p>
<p>-x-x-x-x-</p>
<p>Naruto threw himself on his bed and took his cellphone in his hands. He saw a few missed calls and several texts from Hinata. Their group chat was also being bombarded with messages.</p>
<p><em>Did you hear? Sasuke is out! I'm so happy, </em>he read Hinata's text with a smile before he started typing.</p>
<p>
  <em>Could you talk to him yet?</em>
</p>
<p>While Naruto waited for her response, he opened the group chat to read through all the messages he had missed. Sakura had completely flooded the chat. Even through her texts, it was clear that she had already bounced back to her normal, cheerful self. Ino and Kiba also said some things about being happy with this turn of events. Hinata reacted to almost every one of Sakura's messages with a happy smiley.</p>
<p>Sasuke was also in their group chat but he usually didn't write anything. Naruto doubted he even read the messages. He imagined the Uchiha had muted the chat a long time ago. If he hadn't yet, he sure as hell did when Sakura added Naruto.</p>
<p>He and Kiba were very active in the chat, telling jokes and sending funny pictures or gifs most of the time. Naruto giggled at the mental image that crept into his mind about Sasuke reading all those shit they usually sent. Even if the dark-haired boy tried to ignore Naruto at school, he had to bear with him in the group chat. Naruto was actually surprised that Sasuke hadn't removed himself from the conversation already. Thinking about that, Naruto was now more than sure that Sasuke had muted the chat.</p>
<p>Naruto's phone buzzed as Hinata's next message arrived. <em>Not yet. I want to leave him some space, but I plan on going over to his house today evening. Do you want to come?</em></p>
<p><em>Not a good idea. But we could hang out a bit before you go, </em>Naruto answered and put a winking smiley at the end. <em>It's a date</em>, he added.</p>
<p>The reply was a bit late. Naruto imagined Hinata being as red as a tomato, fidgeting, and being close to fainting. A chortle left his mouth after the image appeared in his mind.</p>
<p>
  <em>Okay. Around 4?</em>
</p>
<p>Naruto smiled as he texted back an okay. An official date with Hinata, huh? He would need to figure out where to take her. Should they just go for a walk again? It didn't turn out very well the last time they did that. His eyes twitched as he recalled his creepy reaction to her blood. No, he should come up with something different this time.</p>
<p>Maybe go to a café? Or a tea house? It would be nice to know if Hinata was more of a coffee or tea person. Naruto mentally took a note to ask her. They could also go to eat ramen. Did Hinata like ramen? Naruto didn't know, he would need to ask that too, but it seemed like a good plan.</p>
<p>He was pondering on his possibilities when he heard someone knocking on their front door. Or pounding on it to be more exact. Furrowing his eyebrows, he pushed himself into a sitting position. Who was this maniac, breaking down their door so early in the morning?</p>
<p>"Hey, you, what the hell," Naruto heard his mother yelling downstairs. "Hey, where do you think you're going?"</p>
<p>Naruto immediately jumped on his feet to run down and check what was going on. He took only a few steps though when someone suddenly appeared in front of him and gave him a painful punch in the face.</p>
<p>"What the fuck," was the only thing he could breathe out while massaging his injured cheek. He didn't have much time to regain his composure because the newcomer grabbed his shoulders aggressively, pushing him to the floor.</p>
<p>Now Naruto was laying on his room's floor with the hostile stranger sitting on his abdomen. Naruto managed to save himself from another punch by grabbing the other boy's fist just before it hit him. Naruto couldn't see his other fist flying toward his face though which again landed on his left cheek with a painful blow.</p>
<p>The stranger lifted his free hand once more to deliver another hit when Minato grabbed his wrist from behind. He tried to free either of his hands, but both Naruto and Minato held them firmly in place.</p>
<p>"Uchiha-san, please, calm down," Naruto heard his father's calm voice.</p>
<p>"You," the dark-haired boy shouted at Naruto and the blond focused his eyes on him. Oh yeah, Sasuke was definitely out of prison. "I know it was you, you piece of shit."</p>
<p>"Uchiha," Kushina's enraged voice entered the room, "stop this now or you will find yourself back in prison in no time." Her threatening tone would make anyone back off immediately and it had the same impact on Sasuke, too.</p>
<p>Sasuke panted heavily but let his tensed muscles loosen up. When Minato felt the boy calming down a bit, he let go of his wrist. Naruto was still holding his other curled-up fist though. He wasn't sure he wouldn't get another punch if he let go.</p>
<p>Sasuke yanked his hand out of the blond's grip with a huff but didn't stand up. He stared into Naruto's blue irises under him. Naruto didn't turn his gaze away, he stubbornly stared back into Sasuke's black eyes.</p>
<p>"What are you doing here, Uchiha-san?" Minato asked.</p>
<p>"You can't just barge in someone's house to beat them up, ya know," Kushina added, clearly pissed.</p>
<p>"I needed to talk to Naruto," Sasuke spat in response, not turning his gaze away from the blond boy under him even for a second.</p>
<p>"You have a weird conception about what talking means," Kushina retorted, folding her arms in exasperation.</p>
<p>"It's okay, Mom."</p>
<p>Kushina opened her mouth to protest, but before she could utter a word, Naruto punched Sasuke in the nose without any warning. The raven-haired boy fell back from the unexpected blow, leaving Naruto an opportunity to lift his weight from the ground. Both Kushina and Minato gasped upon witnessing this rapid turn of events.</p>
<p>"I think we're even now," Naruto smiled at Sasuke while holding out his hand to help him up.</p>
<p>Sasuke glared at the hand in front of him. For a moment, he contemplated accepting it, but it was only a passing weakness on his part. He grunted and hit Naruto's hand away. The blond boy's smiling lips turned into a straight line as he watched Sasuke get to his feet.</p>
<p>Sasuke glanced at Kushina and Minato from the corner of his eyes. They were still unsurely standing in the room, trying to figure out what to do now. Naruto shot a wide grin at them, signaling that he would be okay. Minato nodded and took Kushina's hand to lead her out. She objected vehemently, but Minato pulled her out and closed the door behind them.</p>
<p>"Let's talk," Naruto locked his gaze on Sasuke again, smiling. His smile infuriated Sasuke but he held himself back from hitting the blond boy again.</p>
<p>"I know it was you," he managed to force out the words between his gritted teeth.</p>
<p>"What?" Naruto blinked in confusion.</p>
<p>"Don't play dumb. You were the one fabricating evidence against me."</p>
<p>"Why would I do that?" Naruto scratched his right cheek with his index finger as though he was trying to understand a silly idea.</p>
<p>"Simple. You killed Shion and you were the only suspect of the police. So, you created false evidence to get away with it. You needed another suspect and you chose me to get rid of me. You killed two birds with one stone."</p>
<p>"Wow, you're crazy," Naruto laughed, "but if it's true, why are you out? I mean, I read just today that Shion's murderer killed another girl a few days ago. I think you're aware of that, too, because that's why you were released. If I had put you in prison, I would've wanted you to stay there."</p>
<p>Sasuke stayed silent. Yes, that was the one particular piece of the puzzle that didn't fit. Naruto killing the other girl, too, would be the logical explanation for the situation. However, why would he do that? Sasuke being convicted would've been the best possible scenario for Naruto. He could've just used another weapon if he wanted to kill.</p>
<p>But that was also true for the suspected other killer if Sasuke supposed it really wasn't Naruto who killed both of those girls. The mysterious killer got away with Shion's murder, there was no logical reason for him to draw attention to himself. Except if he did want attention for whatever reason, of course.</p>
<p>Either this, or he wanted to help Sasuke, but that was impossible. Why would someone help him out after they framed him? Or was it possible that he was framed by someone else, completely different than the murderer? But then again, who would do that and why?</p>
<p>It just didn't make any sense.</p>
<p>Naruto tilted his head to the right and crossed his arms in front of his chest, waiting for Sasuke to answer. Sasuke examined his expression, but the blond didn't seem to be panicked. Sasuke had expected him to be at least stunned after learning he had been figured out. He expected Naruto to confirm his theory by an unconscious reaction, but he didn't show any shock or fear. To cap it all, <em>he</em> <em>had</em> <em>fucking laughed in Sasuke's face </em>when he accused him<em>. </em>Not the reaction Sasuke had predicted at all.</p>
<p>"Look, I think I have yet to apologize for… you know," Naruto broke the silence between them. "I want you to know that I'm very sorry for doing that to you."</p>
<p>"Do you really think an apology will make me forget it?" Sasuke scoffed.</p>
<p>"No," Naruto paused for a moment, "I know we most probably won't be friends again. I just wanted to apologize because I never did. That's all."</p>
<p>"Okay. Then, I want you to know that I don't care about you at all. But I won't let you hurt Hinata. She's too naïve to realize who you really are."</p>
<p>"I won't hurt her, but I also won't stay away from her. So, please don't stand in my way, Sasuke," the blond smiled at him, but his smile wasn't genuine.</p>
<p>"Hmpf," was everything Sasuke said in response before he turned around and left Naruto alone.</p>
<p>Naruto sighed as he heard the front door slamming downstairs and his mother yelling, "What a rude boy."</p>
<p>He made his way to the bathroom to check his face in the mirror. He had a purple bruise on his left cheek, but it didn't look too bad. Good. He still had a date to attend today.</p>
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